We have written a great deal about recognizing basic emotions, but what about pain? Certainly, pain has many similarities with other basic emotions, given its deep evolutionary basis and the universal nature of the pain experience. However, further attention must be paid to how we recognize expressions of pain as opposed to those of other…
Read MoreUniversal Laughter and Deception
Is laughter recognized in the same way across cultures? And, if so, can we tell if people in different cultures are faking their laughter? This is exactly what a team of researchers attempted to answer in a recent publication in Psychological Science. An astoundingly large group of 31 researchers sought to analyze reactions to laughter…
Read MoreReading Hairstyles?
We focus a lot on reading people’s nonverbal behavior, but is there something to be read into about our hairstyles also? This is precisely what Humintell’s Drs. David Matsumoto and Hyisung Hwang argue in a recent paper. Essentially, while past research has argued that emotional expressions can reveal one’s culture, they argue that differing hairstyles,…
Read MoreSilent Political Power?
Many commentators are keen to read into the nonverbal behavior of political leaders, but is that even really possible? After Presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin met in Helsinki last week, it’s safe to say that they completely dominated the news cycle. In a presumable effort for a fresh take, the Washington Post interviewed nonverbal…
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