Facial displays and political leadership in France

Although nonverbal cues of dominance and the emotional responses they elicit have been well known since antiquity, the facial displays associated with successful political leadership have a direct political impact on the electorate in the television age. The effects of these stimuli can be studied experimentally from the perspective of human ethology. Recent findings indicate that expressive displays like those of nonhuman primates have similar effects when exhibited by human leaders in France and the United States but that cultural differences in expected behavior may significantly modify their effects.