Our latest empirical article uses a data-driven approach to build prototypical models of smiles that accomplish distinct social tasks: rewarding the self and others (reward), conveying non-threat and maintaining bonds (affiliation), and negotiating social status (dominance). Magdalena Rychlowska, the first author, is a former graduate student of the Niedenthal Emotions Lab and is currently a postdoctoral fellow at Queen's University Belfast, working with Will Curran and Gary McKeown. Co-authors Rachael Jack, Philippe Schyns, and Oliver Garrod (University of Glasgow) contributed their reverse-correlation approach for synthesizing models of facial expressions using perceiver responses.
Check out the article in Psychological Science here and the press release here.
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The facial action units that emerged as indicative of reward, affiliation, and dominance, based on perceiver ratings.