Introduction Emotion is defined as: “a mental state that arises spontaneously rather than through conscious effort and often accompanied by physiological changes” (The Free Dictionary website).

Introduction Cross-culturally, people may be differ in how their understand their emotion, how they call it, how much importance they give to it, and how they express, perceive and feel it.

Scope of the lecture Culture and emotion expression Culture and emotion perception Culture and the experience of emotion Culture and antecedents of emotion Culture and emotion appraisal Culture and language of emotion

Culture and Emotion Expression Facial expressions of emotion is universal  Darwin (1872, 1998) – facial expressions are biologically innate and evolutionarily adaptive. --- Same facial expressions displayed by people regardless of any race, culture ---facial expressions of is communicative and adaptive that ensure a human being’s survival.

The universality of facial expressions of emotion(cont.) History of underlying theories of facial expression in human beings. Several studies have been conducted to test Darwin’s idea about the universality of facial expressions of emotion. However the methodology used in those studies have been questioned.

The universality of facial expressions of emotion(cont.) Anthropologists, such as Margaret Mead have argued that facial expressions of emotion could not be universal phenomenon; it needs to be learned. It was suggested that different languages spoken in different cultures may contribute to different ways of expressing emotion through face.

The universality of facial expressions of emotion (cont.) Universality studies in 1960s (as reported by Ekman, 1972) – photographs of facial expressions of universally recognizable emotions were showed to 5 observers in five different countries (USA,Argen., Brazil, Chile and Japan), and asked to label each expression.

Results : Disgust, anger, fear, happiness, sadness, and surprise  equally identified emotions Conclusion  facial exp of emotion is a universal phenomenon. The universality of facial expressions of emotion (cont.)

Because of these studies included only participants from industrialised, urban area, and who were relatively modern and literate, therefore the universality of it has been criticised. Ekman, Sorenson & Friesen (1969)- similar studies using 2 preliterate tribes of New Guinea. They used stories that best described facial expression instead of emotion words.

The universality of facial expressions of emotion (cont.) Similar results found. The researchers extended the studies to another tribe members. They were asked to show on their faces what they would like if the experienced the different emotions. The emotions displayed were photographed and analysed.

The universality of facial expressions of emotion (cont.) American observers labelled the emotions displayed through each pictures, which also produced the same results as in previous studies  UNIVERSALITY of FACIAL EXPRESSIONS OF EMOTIONS

The universality of facial expressions of emotion (cont.) Do people display different emotions on the face when they experience emotion? Ekman (1972) – found that understressful condition, Japanese and Americans still show similar facial expressions. Other studies – nonhuman primates and congenitally blind infants support the universalism in human facial expressions of emotion.

Figure 1: Images for facial expressions of emotion

Culture display rules in facial expressions Facial expressions of emotion may differ according to cultural display rules. Culture display rules = rules that centred on the appropriateness of displaying each of emotions in particular social circumstances (Ekman & Friesen, 1969). These rules of emotion are learned early (as values), moulded by social situations (adaptive). In adulthood these rules apply automatically.

Culture display rules in facial expressions (cont.) Ekman (1972) and Friesen (1972) – Americans and Japanese watched highly stressful films. Their facial reactions were recorded. In control group (1 st con.) – watch the film alone In 2 nd condition – high-status experimenter came and asked to watch the film again with the experimenter observing.

Culture display rules in facial expressions Results: Americans continue to show emotional expressions similar to before, but the Japanese keep their smiles on –Why?? Not to offend the experimenter. Not to offend the experimenter (cultural teaching of values to respect people of higher status than you..) Conclusion: facial expressions are explained by the universal, biologically innate factors, and culturally specific,learned display rules.

Recent research on emotional expression and display rules Stephan, Stephan & de Vargas (1996) – Americans and Costa Ricans – to rate 38 emotions in terms of how comfortable they would feel expressing them towards family and strangers. Result: Americans were more comfortable expressing interdependent and independent emotions than the CostaRicans. Costa Ricans were less comfy in expressing –ve emotions.

Recent research on emotional expression and display rules (cont.) Matsumoto (1993)- to rate appropriateness in showing emotion in different social situations amongst Caucasians, Black, Asian, and Latino Americans.

Caucasians rates hatred/contempt, disgust, fear, and sadness as more appropriate than Asian, blacks and Latinos and Latinos, and blacks and Asians. Other studies: Austalians compared to Japanese were more expressive in positive emotions Recent research on emotional expression and display rules (cont.)

Type of culture IndividuaisticCollectivistic SELF-INGROUP RELATIONS Ok to express-ve feelings, less need to display =ve feelings Suppress expressions of negative feelings; more pressure to display positive feelings SELF-OUTGROUP RELATIONS Suppress –ve feelings ; ok to express +ve felings as would toward ingroups. Encouraged to express –ve feelings; suppress display of positvie feelings reserved for ingrous

Culture and Emotion Perception Evidence for cross-cultural similarities in emotional perception – studies on Japanese and Americans showed similarities in perception of contempt expressions, intensity ratings, emotion recognition.

Evidence for cross-cultural differences: -emotion recognition (Americans were better at recognising anger, disgust, fear, and sadness than Japanese. -People of Individualistic cultures are better at recognising negative emotion than those of collectivistic. Culture and Emotion Perception

Culture and Emotion Perception (cont.) Ekman et al’s (1987) study found that intensity ratings for happiness, surprise, and fear were low amongst Asians compared to the Westerns. This may explain the “culturally learned decoding rules” about how to perceive expression when the posers* were Caucasians (white). This is probably they were just trying to be polite or just being ignorant (couldn’t careless).

Matsumoto’s (1989) study: -ve correlation between Power Distance and intensity ratings of fear, anger, and sadness. *Posers – White people whose posed for different emotion expression which has been displayed or showed in pictures. Culture and Emotion Perception (cont.)

Attribution of personality based on smile Friesen”s (1972) study : -Japanese and Americans watched disgusting video clips with experimenter along. Japanese smiles more often than the Americans to conceal their negative expressions. -In other studies, Americans rated smiling faces as intelligent than neutral faces; whilst, Japanese did not. -However both viewed smiling faces as more sociable than neutral faces.

Culture and the Experience of Emotion Smilarities in emotional experience Scherer and colleagues ( ) – Participants from European countries produced similar results on describing a situation in which they felt the emotion, and provide info on non-verbal reactions, physical sensations, and verbal utterances.

Scherer et al (1988) extended this study to 37 countries in 5 continents with 3 more additional emotions – shame, guilt, and disgust. Results  similar responses reported for all emotions. Culture and the Experience of Emotion

Culture and the Experience of Emotion (cont.) Cultural differences in emotion experience Scherer and colleagues found that: Japanese reported experiencing all emotions – more often than the Europeans. Americans > Europeans & Japanese in joy. Japanese  fewer limbs gestures, whole body movements, vocal and facial reactions to emotion than did Americans or Europeans.

Culture and the Experience of Emotion (cont.) Americans turned to be the highest in expressing facial and vocal reactions. Both Americans and Europeans showed more physiological sensations than did the Japanese (e.g. changes in temperature, cardiovascular and gastric disturbances)

Culture and antecedent of emotion Emotion antecedents are events or situations that trigger (mendorong) or elicit (menghasilkan) an emotion Emotion antecedents vary across culture.

Cultural similarity – Boucher & Brandt (1981) – USA and Malaysia participants were asked to describe situations in which someone cause someone else to feel anger, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness or surprise. 96 antecedents to various emotions were generated. Culture and antecedent of emotion

Culture and antecedent of emotion (cont.) Another group of participants rated the antecedent. The Americans correctly classify the antecedents equally well regardless of whether they were originally generated by Americans or Malaysians. This shows that origin culture did not affect the classification. Replications of this study on other groups of participants also found similar results.

Culture and antecedent of emotion (cont.) Cultural differences: Cultural events, the birth of a family member, body centered “basic pleasures” and achievement related situations are antecedents for joy for Europeans & Americans than for Japanese.

Death of family members/close friends and physical separations are antecedents for sadness for Europeans and Americans. Problems in relationships are antecedents for fear in Japanese. Culture and antecedent of emotion (cont.)

Cultural and emotion appraisal Emotion appraisal is a process by which people evaluate events, situations, that lead them having emotions. Similar results: Almost the same descriptions of situations that elicit a widely accepted 16 emotions using questionnaires.

This similarity indicates universality of responses which may be due to the appropriateness and cultural-free measurement of emotion used in the research. Cultural and emotion appraisal (cont.)

Culture and the language of emotion Not all cultures have a word that equally match the word “emotion”. Even if there are cultures that have a word that corresponds to the word emotion, the connotations of the underlying concept of emotion could be different between cultures.

Certain labels of emotion in some languages may have no equivalent words in another cultures. E.g. “Schadenfreude” in Germany = “pleasure that derived from another’s misfortune” – no exact equivalent English word. Culture and the language of emotion (cont.)

Conclusion People’s ability to identify emotions based on facial expression is a universal phenomenon, Psychobiological approaches may explain this as innate (semulajadi) ability of a human being. However, cultures may shape emotions that results in different ways in displaying, intensifying, perceiving events that may trigger emotions, etc.