Sex differences in emotion recognition ability: The mediating role of trait emotional awareness

People hold strong beliefs regarding the role of emotional cues in detecting deception. While research on the diagnostic value of such cues has been mixed, their influence on human veracity judgments should not be ignored. Here, we address the relationship between emotional information and veracity judgments. In Study 1, the role of emotion recognition in the process of detecting naturalistic lies was investigated. Decoders’ accuracy was compared based on differences in trait empathy and their ability to recognize microexpressions and subtle expressions. Accuracy was found to be unrelated to facial cue recognition but negatively related to empathy. In Study 2, we manipulated decoders’ emotion recognition ability and the type of lies they saw: experiential or affective. Decoders either received emotion recognition training, bogus training, or no training. In all scenarios, training was not found to impact on accuracy. Experiential lies were easier to detect than affective lies, but, affective emotional lies were easier to detect than affective unemotional lies. The findings suggest that emotion recognition has a complex relationship with veracity judgments.

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Veracity judgement, not accuracy: Reconsidering the role of facial expressions, empathy, and emotion recognition training on deception detection

Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology ◽

10.1177/1747021820978851 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 174702182097885

Author(s):

Mircea Zloteanu ◽

Peter Bull ◽

Eva G Krumhuber ◽

Daniel C Richardson

Keyword(s):

Emotion Recognition ◽

Deception Detection ◽

Diagnostic Value ◽

Emotional Information ◽

Emotional Cues ◽

Recognition Ability ◽

Cue Recognition ◽

Emotion Recognition Ability ◽

Emotion Recognition Training

People hold strong beliefs about the role of emotional cues in detecting deception. While research on the diagnostic value of such cues has been mixed, their influence on human veracity judgements is yet to be fully explored. Here, we address the relationship between emotional information and veracity judgements. In Study 1, the role of emotion recognition in the process of detecting naturalistic lies was investigated. Decoders’ veracity judgements were compared based on differences in trait empathy and their ability to recognise microexpressions and subtle expressions. Accuracy was found to be unrelated to facial cue recognition and negatively related to empathy. In Study 2, we manipulated decoders’ emotion recognition ability and the type of lies they saw: experiential or affective (emotional and unemotional). Decoders received either emotion recognition training, bogus training, or no training. In all scenarios, training did not affect veracity judgements. Experiential lies were easier to detect than affective lies; however, affective unemotional lies were overall the hardest to judge. The findings illustrate the complex relationship between emotion recognition and veracity judgements, with abilities for facial cue detection being high yet unrelated to deception accuracy.

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Attachment Representation and Emotion Recognition Ability in Children with ADHD and Their Parents: A Study Protocol

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18052277 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (5) ◽

pp. 2277

Author(s):

Ruediger Kissgen ◽

Sebastian Franke ◽

Moritz Susewind ◽

Maya Krischer

Keyword(s):

Emotion Recognition ◽

Clinical Sample ◽

Disorganized Attachment ◽

Control Group ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Children With Adhd ◽

Adhd Diagnosis ◽

Attachment Research ◽

Recognition Ability ◽

Emotion Recognition Ability

Background: Few studies in clinical attachment research to date have examined children with an attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) diagnosis. This is surprising for two reasons: first, there are a number of parallels between the behaviors of children with an insecure and disorganized attachment and the behaviors of children with an ADHD diagnosis. Second, secure attachment has a positive effect on the development of skills in areas in which children with ADHD demonstrate problems (e.g., attention span, impulse control). There are currently no findings on whether or not and how insecure and disorganized attachment and ADHD affect children’s emotion recognition ability. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study, part exploratory and part hypothesis-driven in the context of basic research. A clinical sample of 5- to 10-year-old children with an ADHD diagnosis and their parents is to be compared to a non-clinical unaffected control group. Over a period of 3 years, 80 subjects and their parents are to be recruited in each group for participation in the study. Discussion: This study is the first to examine links between attachment, emotion recognition ability, and ADHD. It is also the first to include not just children with ADHD but also their mothers and fathers in its design. The findings should help reduce the research gap and generate more knowledge for family interventions in the case of ADHD.

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Maternal depressive symptoms and children's academic performance: sex differences in the mediating role of school experiences

Psychological Medicine ◽

10.1017/s0033291720004298 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 1-10

Author(s):

Marilyn N. Ahun ◽

Lamprini Psychogiou ◽

Frédéric Guay ◽

Michel Boivin ◽

Richard E. Tremblay ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sex Differences ◽

Depressive Symptoms ◽

Peer Victimization ◽

School Engagement ◽

School Experiences ◽

Maternal Depressive Symptoms ◽

Reading And Writing ◽

Mediating Role ◽

Writing Scores

Abstract Background Maternal depressive symptoms (MDSs) are negatively associated with children's academic performance, with stronger effects sometimes reported in boys. However, few studies have tested the mechanisms of this association. We examined the mediating role of school engagement and peer victimization in this association and tested for sex differences. Methods Participants were 1173 families from a population-based longitudinal Canadian study. MDSs were self-reported annually using the Centre for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (child's age: 5 months to 5 years). Data on mediators (peer victimization, cognitive, behavioral, and emotional school engagement) were reported annually from ages 6–10 by multiple informants including children, parents, and teachers using items from validated scales. Mathematics, reading, and writing exam scores at age 12 were obtained from standardized exams administered by Québec's Ministry of Education and Teaching. Structural equation modeling was used to test mediation by school experiences in boys and girls. Results Exposure to MDSs was negatively associated with mathematics, reading, and writing scores in girls and with mathematics only in boys. Cognitive and behavioral engagement significantly mediated the association between MDSs and mathematics, reading, and writing scores in girls. There were no significant mediators for boys. Conclusions Prevention and intervention strategies aiming to improve school engagement might be beneficial for daughters of mothers experiencing depressive symptoms. Further research is needed to replicate these findings and to identify the mechanisms explaining this association in boys.

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