Microsoft Word Chapter 1 done doc

particular expression with a specific emotion, for example why we 
blush when we are embarrassed, or why we make a characteristic 
mouth movement when disgusted. He provided evidence that facial 
expressions of emotion are universal, i.e., that facial expressions 
for specific emotions are similar in many different cultures and that 
human emotional expressions are universal -- that all humans 
encode and decode expressions in the same way. Modern 
research suggests that Darwin was right for the six major emotional 
expressions: anger, happiness, surprise, fear, disgust, and sadness. 
• Face—reveals current moods/feelings. 
• Eye contact—reveals friendliness, shyness, aggression. 
• Body language (position, posture, movement) — reveals 
emotional states, status, cultural emblems. 
• Touching—reveals affection, interest, dominance, caring, 
threat and aggression. 
Further, he investigated the functions of facial expressions. 
He concluded that facial expressions in nonhuman primates 
represent, like in man, feelings. Mimic, as a means of 
communication is essential for a species in order to regulate the 
social interaction within the group. By facial expressions and 
sounds, animals indicate if they feel attracted to each other or if 
they feel hostility toward each other. Additionally, Darwin 
investigated the determinants of facial expressions and defined 
them along certain universal principles. The first is the principle of 
serviceable associated habits meaning that behaviour performed 
consciously in order to survive becomes unconscious with a certain 
state of mind. Behaviour like fleeing from an enemy is then 

---

44
associated with fear. Unconscious performance develops by habit 
when fear or anger arouse. The second principle is the principle of 
antithesis meaning that when certain states of mind produce 
habitual, serviceable actions, the opposite state of mind leads to a 
strong tendency to produce opposite action although they are not of 
use.
Although facial expressions are a prime source of nonverbal 
communication, they may sometimes be hard to interpret 
accurately because people may display affect blends, facial 
expressions where one part of the face registers one emotion and 
another part registers a different emotion.
The fact that people sometimes try to appear less emotional 
than they are also makes decoding difficult. Culture also influences 
emotional expression; display rules that are unique to each culture 
dictate when different nonverbal behaviors are appropriate to 
display.
As Darwin observed, all humans, regardless of race, use the 
same muscle contractions and facial movements for simple and 
complex emotions. These observations lend themselves to the 
theory that individuals who were better able to communicate 
through expression were more likely to reproduce and pass on their 
genes.
Darwin further explored the facial expressions of primates 
and other mammals to prove the evolutionary connections between 
the species. Most notable are the similarities between humans and 
primates like the similarities between the expression of simple 
emotions in human and chimpanzee infants. It is now known 
through more in-depth evolutionary analysis that chimpanzees are 
the most closely related species to humans.
Over the past two decades, emotion researchers have 
uncovered convincing data to support Darwin's contention that 
there are facial expressions with "universal" meanings. Studies 
have found that human facial structure results in the most telling 
facial expressions of any species. The presence of eyebrows, more 
visible white in the eyes, more pronounced lips and additional 
muscles in the faces has expanded the repertoire of expressions 
humans can make to articulate more complex emotions, such as 
love and disappointment. On the other hand, other species can only 
communicate simple emotions and often must use other body parts 
to fully express themselves. Therefore, the use of emotional 
expression was crucial to the development of the more complex 
communication that is characteristic of Homo sapiens. 

---

45
Although nonverbal behavior and implicit personality theories 
provide a guide to understanding others, there is still substantial 
ambiguity about why people act the way they do. Attribution theory 
describes the way in which people explain the causes of their own 
and other people’s behavior.