scholarly journals EXPRESS: Feelings first? Sex differences in affective and cognitive processes in emotion recognition

2021 ◽  
pp. 174702182110645
Author(s):  
Judith Bek ◽  
Bronagh Donohoe ◽  
Nuala Brady
Keyword(s):  
Sex Differences ◽  
Theory Of Mind ◽  
Emotion Recognition ◽  
Cognitive Processes ◽  
Response Times ◽  
Emotional Expressions ◽  
Basic Emotions ◽  
Empathy Quotient ◽  
The Mind ◽  
Rapid Processing

The recognition of emotional expressions is important for social understanding and interaction, but findings on the relationship between emotion recognition, empathy and theory of mind, as well as sex differences in these relationships, have been inconsistent. This may reflect the relative involvement of affective and cognitive processes at different stages of emotion recognition and in different experimental paradigms. In the present study, images of faces morphed from neutral to full expression of five basic emotions (anger, disgust, fear, happiness, and sadness), which participants were asked to identify as quickly and accurately as possible. Accuracy and response times from healthy males (N=46) and females (N=43) were analysed in relation to the Empathy Quotient (EQ; Baron-Cohen & Wheelwright, 2004) and the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (Eyes Test; Baron-Cohen et al., 2001) as a measure of mentalising or theory of mind. Females were faster and more accurate than males in recognising dynamic emotions. Linear mixed-effects modelling showed that response times were inversely related to the emotional empathy subscale of the EQ, but this was accounted for by a female advantage on both measures. Accuracy was unrelated to EQ scores but was predicted independently by sex and Eyes Test scores. These findings suggest that rapid processing of dynamic emotional expressions is strongly influenced by sex, which may reflect the greater involvement of affective processes at earlier stages of emotion recognition.

Impaired Perception of Unintentional Transgression of Social Norms after Prefrontal Cortex Damage: Relationship to Decision Making, Emotion Recognition, and Executive Functions

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Riadh Ouerchefani ◽  
Naoufel Ouerchefani ◽  
Mohamed Riadh Ben Rejeb ◽  
Didier Le Gall
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Social Behavior ◽  
Theory Of Mind ◽  
Social Norms ◽  
Executive Functions ◽  
Emotion Recognition ◽  
Iowa Gambling Task ◽  
Gambling Task ◽  
Basic Emotions

Abstract Objective Patients with prefrontal cortex damage often transgress social rules and show lower accuracy in identifying and explaining inappropriate social behavior. The objective of this study was to examine the relationship between the ability to perceive other unintentional transgressions of social norms and both decision making and emotion recognition as these abilities are critical for appropriate social behavior. Method We examined a group of patients with focal prefrontal cortex damage (N = 28) and a group of matched control participants (N = 28) for their abilities to detect unintentional transgression of social norms using the “Faux-Pas” task of theory of mind, to make advantageous decisions on the Iowa gambling task, and to recognize basic emotions on the Ekman facial affect test. Results The group of patients with frontal lobe damage was impaired in all of these tasks compared with control participants. Moreover, all the “Faux-Pas”, Iowa gambling, and emotion recognition tasks were significantly associated and predicted by executive measures of inhibition, flexibility, or planning. However, only measures from the Iowa gambling task were associated and predicted performance on the “Faux-Pas” task. These tasks were not associated with performance in recognition of basic emotions. These findings suggest that theory of mind, executive functions, and decision-making abilities act in an interdependent way for appropriate social behavior. However, theory of mind and emotion recognition seem to have distinct but additive effects upon social behavior. Results from VLSM analysis also corroborate these data by showing a partially overlapped prefrontal circuitry underlying these cognitive domains.

Theory of mind and emotion-recognition functioning in autistic spectrum disorders and in psychiatric control and normal children

1999 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-58 ◽  
Author(s):  
JAN K. BUITELAAR ◽  
MARLEEN VAN DER WEES ◽  
HANNA SWAAB–BARNEVELD ◽  
RUTGER JAN VAN DER GAAG
Keyword(s):  
Theory Of Mind ◽  
Emotion Recognition ◽  
Developmental Disorder ◽  
Second Order ◽  
Emotional Expressions ◽  
Normal Children ◽  
Verbal Iq ◽  
Context Recognition ◽  
Not Otherwise Specified ◽  
Spectrum Disorders

The hypothesis was tested that weak theory of mind (ToM) and/or emotion recognition (ER) abilities are specific to subjects with autism. Differences in ToM and ER performance were examined between autistic (n = 20), pervasive developmental disorder—not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS) (n = 20), psychiatric control (n = 20), and normal children (n = 20). The clinical groups were matched person-to-person on age and verbal IQ. We used tasks for the matching and the context recognition of emotional expressions, and a set of first- and second-order ToM tasks. Autistic and PDD-NOS children could not be significantly differentiated from each other, nor could they be differentiated from the psychiatric controls with a diagnosis of ADHD (n = 9). The psychiatric controls with conduct disorder or dysthymia performed about as well as normal children. The variance in second-order ToM performance contributed most to differences between diagnostic groups.

Measuring Individual Differences in Measures of Autism Spectrum Disorders

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karrie E. Elpers ◽  
Thomas R. Coyle
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorders ◽  
Individual Differences ◽  
Theory Of Mind ◽  
Predictive Power ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Hierarchical Regression ◽  
General Intelligence ◽  
Empathy Quotient ◽  
Spectrum Disorders ◽  
The Mind

Abstract. Previous research suggests that theory of mind tasks such as the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET) are correlated with general intelligence ( g). The present study replicated and extended this research by testing correlations between g, the RMET, and two related measures, the empathy quotient (EQ) and systematizing quotient (SQ). The RMET, EQ, and SQ were all significantly correlated with g (r = .27 with RMET; r = −.15 with EQ; r = .27 with SQ). To determine if the RMET, EQ, and SQ derive their predictive power from g, a hierarchical regression examined whether the RMET, EQ, and SQ predicted feelings toward STEM and humanities after controlling for g. The EQ and SQ continued to significantly predict feelings toward STEM (β = −.20 for EQ; β = .42 for SQ) after controlling for g, and the RMET and EQ continued to significantly predict feelings toward humanities (β = .10 for RMET; β = .20 for EQ) after controlling for g, suggesting that these measures do not entirely derive their predictive power from g.

scholarly journals Negative and Neutral Valences of Affective Theory of Mind are More Impaired than Positive Valence in Clinically Stable Schizophrenia Patients

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (5) ◽  
pp. 460-464
Author(s):  
Thammanard Charernboon
Keyword(s):  
Social Cognition ◽  
Theory Of Mind ◽  
Emotion Recognition ◽  
Mental State ◽  
Emotional Valence ◽  
Positive Valence ◽  
The Mind ◽  
Normal Controls

Objective People with schizophrenia show impairment in social cognition, such as emotion recognition and theory of mind. The current study aims to compare the ability of clinically stable schizophrenia patients to decode the positive, negative and neutral affective mental state of others with educational match-paired normal control.Methods 50 people with schizophrenia and 50 matched controls were compared on the positive, negative and neutral emotional valence of affective theory of mind using the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Tests.Results The results showed that people with schizophrenia performed worse in negative and neutral emotional valence than normal controls; however, no significant differences in decoding positive valence were found.Conclusion Our data suggest that there is variability in the performance of affective theory of mind according to emotion valence; the impairments seem to be specific to only negative and neutral emotions, but not positive ones.

scholarly journals Usability of a Psychotherapeutic Interactive Gaming Tool Used in Facial Emotion Recognition for People with Schizophrenia

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 214
Author(s):  
Roberto Pablo González ◽  
Ingrid Tortadès ◽  
Francesc Alpiste ◽  
Joaquín Fernandez ◽  
Jordi Torner ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Theory Of Mind ◽  
Emotion Recognition ◽  
Attributional Style ◽  
Mental States ◽  
Error Rates ◽  
Basic Emotions ◽  
Attribution Questionnaire ◽  
Healthy Control ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Situational Attribution

The objective of the study was to test the usability of ‘Feeling Master’ as a psychotherapeutic interactive gaming tool with LEGO cartoon faces showing the five basic emotions, for the assessment of emotional recognition in people with schizophrenia in comparison with healthy controls, and the relationship between face affect recognition (FER), attributional style, and theory of mind (ToM), which is the ability to understand the potential mental states and intentions of others. Nineteen individuals with schizophrenia (SZ) and 17 healthy control (HC) subjects completed the ‘Feeling Master’ that includes five basic emotions. To assess social cognition, the group with schizophrenia was evaluated with the Personal and Situational Attribution Questionnaire (IPSAQ) for the assessment of attributional style and the Hinting Task (ToM). Patients with SZ showed significant impairments in emotion recognition and their response time appeared to be slower than the HC in the recognition of each emotion. Taking into account the impairment in the recognition of each emotion, we only found a trend toward significance in error rates on fear recognition. The correlations between correct response on the ‘Feeling Master’ and the hinting task appeared to be significant in the correlation of surprise and theory of mind. In conclusion, this study demonstrated that the ‘Feeling Master’ could be useful for the evaluation of FER in people with schizophrenia. These results sustain the notion that impairments in emotion recognition are more prevalent in people with schizophrenia and that these are related with impairment in ToM.

Sense of familiarity and face emotion recognition in schizophrenia

2011 ◽  
Vol 26 (S2) ◽  
pp. 1427-1427
Author(s):  
G. Lahera ◽  
V. de los Ángeles ◽  
C. Fernández ◽  
M. Bardón ◽  
S. Herrera ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Emotion Recognition ◽  
Cognitive Processes ◽  
Emotional Valence ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Healthy Controls ◽  
Basic Emotions ◽  
Schizophrenic Patients ◽  
Affective Experiences ◽  
Face Emotion Recognition ◽  
Unfamiliar Faces

IntroductionPatients with schizophrenia show a deficit in emotion recognition through facial expression. Familiarity means the implicit memory of past affective experiences and it involves fast cognitive processes and it is triggered by certain signals.ObjectivesTo assess the emotion recognition in familiar and unfamiliar faces in a sample of schizophrenic patients and healthy controls.Methods18 outpatients diagnosed with schizophrenia (DSM-IVTR) and 18 healthy volunteers were assessed with the Ekman Test of emotion recognition in unfamiliar faces. In addition each subject was accompanied by 4 familiar people (parents, siblings or friends), which was photographed by expressing the 6 Ekman’s basic emotions.ResultsSchizophrenic patients recognize worse emotions in their relatives than in neutral faces, a greater extent than controls (Mann-Whitney U = 81, p = .01). The patient group showed a mean score on the Ekman test (neutral faces) lower than control group (16 (SD 2.38) versus 17.82 (2.13; U p = 0.03). Regarding familiar faces, the group patients showed a worse performance than the control group (13.22 (3.8) versus 17.18 (2.82); U p = 0.00). In both tests, the highest number of errors was with emotions of anger and fear. The patients group showed a lower level of familiarity and emotional valence to their families (U = 33, p < 0.01).ConclusionsThe sense of familiarity may be a factor involved in face emotion recognition and it may be disturbed in schizophrenia.

scholarly journals Reading the Mind in Robots: How Theory of Mind Ability Alters Mental State Attributions During Human-Robot Interactions

2019 ◽  
Vol 63 (1) ◽  
pp. 1550-1554
Author(s):  
Jacquelyn L. Schreck ◽  
Olivia B. Newton ◽  
Jihye Song ◽  
Stephen M. Fiore
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Theory Of Mind ◽  
Cognitive Processes ◽  
Mental State ◽  
Social Cognitive ◽  
Human Robot Interaction ◽  
Social Signals ◽  
Robot Interaction ◽  
Navigation Task ◽  
The Mind

This study examined how human-robot interaction is influenced by individual differences in theory of mind ability. Participants engaged in a hallway navigation task with a robot over a number of trials. The display on the robot and its proxemics behavior was manipulated, and participants made mental state attributions across trials. Participant ability in theory of mind was also assessed. Results show that proxemics behavior and robotic display characteristics differentially influence the degree to which individuals perceive the robot when making mental state attributions about self or other. Additionally, theory of mind ability interacted with proxemics and display characteristics. The findings illustrate the importance of understanding individual differences in higher level cognition. As robots become more social, the need to understand social cognitive processes in human-robot interactions increases. Results are discussed in the context of how individual differences and social signals theory inform research in human-robot interaction.

scholarly journals Emotion Recognition from Realistic Dynamic Emotional Expressions Cohere with Established Emotion Recognition Tests: A Proof-of-Concept Validation of the Emotional Accuracy Test

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 25
Author(s):  
Jacob Israelashvili ◽  
Lisanne S. Pauw ◽  
Disa A. Sauter ◽  
Agneta H. Fischer
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Emotion Recognition ◽  
Emotional Expressions ◽  
Proof Of Concept ◽  
Accuracy Test ◽  
Crucial Feature ◽  
Recognition Ability ◽  
Emotion Recognition Ability ◽  
The Mind ◽  
Concept Validation

Individual differences in understanding other people’s emotions have typically been studied with recognition tests using prototypical emotional expressions. These tests have been criticized for the use of posed, prototypical displays, raising the question of whether such tests tell us anything about the ability to understand spontaneous, non-prototypical emotional expressions. Here, we employ the Emotional Accuracy Test (EAT), which uses natural emotional expressions and defines the recognition as the match between the emotion ratings of a target and a perceiver. In two preregistered studies (Ntotal = 231), we compared the performance on the EAT with two well-established tests of emotion recognition ability: the Geneva Emotion Recognition Test (GERT) and the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET). We found significant overlap (r > 0.20) between individuals’ performance in recognizing spontaneous emotions in naturalistic settings (EAT) and posed (or enacted) non-verbal measures of emotion recognition (GERT, RMET), even when controlling for individual differences in verbal IQ. On average, however, participants reported enjoying the EAT more than the other tasks. Thus, the current research provides a proof-of-concept validation of the EAT as a useful measure for testing the understanding of others’ emotions, a crucial feature of emotional intelligence. Further, our findings indicate that emotion recognition tests using prototypical expressions are valid proxies for measuring the understanding of others’ emotions in more realistic everyday contexts.

scholarly journals Reading the mind in cartoon eyes: Comparing human versus cartoon emotion recognition in those with high and low levels of autistic traits

2021 ◽  
pp. 003329412098813
Author(s):  
Gray Atherton ◽  
Liam Cross
Keyword(s):  
Theory Of Mind ◽  
Emotion Recognition ◽  
Perspective Taking ◽  
Autistic Traits ◽  
Facial Emotion Recognition ◽  
Facial Emotion ◽  
Test Results ◽  
Low Levels ◽  
The Mind ◽  
High Degree

People who have a high degree of autistic traits often underperform on theory of mind tasks such as perspective-taking or facial emotion recognition compared to those with lower levels of autistic traits. However, some research suggests that this may not be the case if the agent they are evaluating is anthropomorphic (i.e. animal or cartoon) rather than typically human. The present studies examined the relation between facial emotion recognition and autistic trait profiles in over 750 adults using either a standard or cartoon version of the Reading the Mind in the Eyes (RME) test. Results showed that those scoring above the clinical cut off for autistic traits on the Autism Quotient performed significantly worse than those with the lowest levels of autistic traits on the standard RME, while scores across these groups did not differ substantially on the cartoon version of the task. These findings add further evidence that theory of mind ability such as facial emotion recognition is not at a global deficit in those with a high degree of autistic traits. Instead, differences in this ability may be specific to evaluating human agents.

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