What is the Facial Action Coding System (FACS)?

A: A clinical rating scale for assessing emotional dysfunction in psychiatric patients

B: A comprehensive system developed by Ekman and Friesen to objectively code facial muscle movements (Action Units) independently of emotional interpretation

C: A computer algorithm for automated real-time emotion recognition from video

D: A self-report questionnaire measuring habitual emotional expressivity

Correct: A comprehensive system developed by Ekman and Friesen to objectively code facial muscle movements (Action Units) independently of emotional interpretation

FACS, developed by Paul Ekman and Wallace Friesen and published in 1978, provides a comprehensive taxonomy of facial muscle movements based on the underlying anatomy. Each distinct movement is coded as an "Action Unit" (AU) — for example, AU1 (inner brow raise), AU6 (cheek raise), AU12 (lip corner pull). FACS allows researchers and clinicians to describe and measure facial behaviour objectively, without first assuming that a particular expression reflects a particular emotion. It remains the gold standard in facial expression research.

What are "micro-expressions" as described by Ekman?

A: The smallest measurable facial muscle movements detectable only through FACS slow-motion analysis

B: Brief, involuntary facial expressions lasting a fraction of a second that may reveal concealed emotions

C: Facial expressions typical of infants before socialisation has occurred

D: Expressions that deviate from cultural norms and therefore indicate psychological disturbance

Correct: Brief, involuntary facial expressions lasting a fraction of a second that may reveal concealed emotions

Micro-expressions are rapid, involuntary facial movements that last approximately 1/25 to 1/5 of a second. Ekman proposed that when people attempt to suppress or mask an emotion, the genuine expression can "leak" as a micro-expression before the deliberate mask is applied. They are difficult to see in real time without training. Ekman developed training programmes for detecting them, which have been applied in security and clinical contexts — though the reliability and validity of micro-expression detection remains a topic of scientific debate.

Ekman's most influential test of the universality of facial expressions involved studying:

A: Bilingual adults across 10 countries to test for language effects on emotion labelling

B: Isolated pre-literate communities in Papua New Guinea who had minimal contact with Western media

C: Congenitally blind athletes who had never observed facial expressions visually

D: Identical twins raised in different cultures to separate genetic from environmental contributions

Correct: Isolated pre-literate communities in Papua New Guinea who had minimal contact with Western media

Ekman's Papua New Guinea studies with the Fore people were methodologically significant because they controlled for Western media exposure — a key confound in cross-cultural recognition studies. If people worldwide recognise expressions because they all watch the same films, that is not evidence of biological universality. The Fore participants, who had had minimal contact with outsiders, still matched expressions to emotional stories at above-chance rates. Ekman interpreted this as evidence that expression-recognition is innate. Critics note that the Fore used a forced-choice format and were exposed to some outsiders.

What are "display rules" in the study of emotional expression?

A: The genetic programme governing which muscles activate for each universal emotion

B: Culturally determined norms about when, how, and with whom it is appropriate to express emotions

C: The set of universal facial expressions that override cultural suppression when emotion is intense enough

D: Rules specifying which emotions can be masked without detection by trained observers

Correct: Culturally determined norms about when, how, and with whom it is appropriate to express emotions

Ekman and Friesen proposed "display rules" to reconcile cross-cultural universality with observed cultural differences in emotional expression. While the underlying "neuromotor programmes" for basic emotions may be universal, cultures overlay social norms that regulate when and how those expressions should be shown. For example, Japanese and American participants showed similar spontaneous expressions when watching emotionally arousing films alone, but Japanese participants were more likely to mask negative expressions with a smile when in the presence of an authority figure.

What methodological criticism has Lisa Feldman Barrett directed at the evidence for universality of facial expression recognition?

A: Ekman never studied non-Western populations and all his data came from WEIRD samples

B: Forced-choice recognition tasks artificially constrain responses and inflate apparent cross-cultural agreement; free-labelling studies find substantially lower consensus

C: Ekman's studies relied on actors producing posed expressions rather than spontaneous natural expressions

D: FACS coding is insufficiently reliable because it requires intensive human judgement

Correct: Forced-choice recognition tasks artificially constrain responses and inflate apparent cross-cultural agreement; free-labelling studies find substantially lower consensus

Barrett and colleagues argue that when people are given a set of emotion labels and asked to choose which fits a face (forced choice), agreement appears high because the task narrows the response set artificially. Cross-cultural studies using free-labelling — where participants name the emotion in their own words without a provided list — find much lower cross-cultural agreement. A 2020 meta-analysis (Cowen, Keltner et al.) using free-association methods found more nuanced and culturally variable emotion recognition patterns than Ekman's six-category model suggests.

True or False: Cross-cultural studies consistently show that people from isolated societies recognise facial expressions of basic emotions at better-than-chance rates in forced-choice tasks.

Answer: True

Even taking into account the methodological critiques of forced-choice designs, the weight of cross-cultural evidence does show above-chance recognition of at least some emotion expressions — particularly happiness — across cultures. The debate is about the magnitude of universality and whether it extends to all six of Ekman's basic emotions, not whether there is any cross-cultural agreement at all. Positive emotions (especially happiness) show much higher cross-cultural recognition than negative emotions such as fear and disgust.

The "broaden-and-build" theory of positive emotions was developed by which psychologist?

A: Paul Ekman

B: Barbara Fredrickson

C: Richard Lazarus

D: Robert Plutchik

Correct: Barbara Fredrickson

Barbara Fredrickson proposed broaden-and-build in 1998 to explain the adaptive value of positive emotions, which had long been neglected in emotion research compared to the more obviously survival-relevant negative emotions. The theory has been tested across numerous studies examining cognitive, social, and physical health outcomes of positive emotion induction and of trait positivity.

What does Fredrickson's broaden-and-build theory propose about the function of positive emotions?

A: Positive emotions evolved as social signals to communicate safety, and have no direct individual adaptive function

B: Positive emotions broaden momentary thought-action repertoires and build enduring personal resources — physical, intellectual, social, and psychological

C: Positive emotions suppress the intensity of negative emotions by competing for the same neural resources

D: Positive emotions signal goal attainment and serve only to consolidate and reinforce successful behaviours

Correct: Positive emotions broaden momentary thought-action repertoires and build enduring personal resources — physical, intellectual, social, and psychological

Fredrickson's broaden-and-build theory proposes two linked effects of positive emotions. "Broaden": positive emotions (joy, curiosity, contentment, love) momentarily expand attention and cognition — people think more flexibly, creatively, and inclusively. "Build": over time this broader thinking leads to building durable personal resources. Compared to negative emotions, which narrow attention for immediate survival, positive emotions invest in long-term flourishing. This framework has been influential in positive psychology and wellbeing interventions.