Components and Recognition of Facial Expression in the Communication of Emotion by Actors

Abstract

Abstract According to psychoevolutionist theories (Ekman, 1984, 1993; Izard, 1977; Izard & Malatesta, 1987; Plutchik, 1980), facial expressions play an important role in the communication of emotion and in the regulation of social interactions. The information provided by facial displays allows protagonists involved in social interactions to mutually appraise their emotional states and adjust their behavior in the appropriate way. One phenomenon that contributes to the complexity of the communication of emotion is the control that human beings have of their facial expressions. According to Ekman (1977) and Malatesta and Izard (1984), many control strategies may be used, such as attenuating, amplifying, simulating, or masking the expression of an emotion. The ability of human beings to control their facial expressions raises several issues. One of the main issues is the degree of similarity between facial expressions of genuine emotions and those of simulated emotions. Given that simulation is a strategy commonly used by the encoder to convince the decoder that an emotion is felt, it is justified to assume that facial expressions of simulated emotions are good reproductions of those of genuine emotions.