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Beyond Smiles: Static Expressions in Maxillary Protrusion and Associated Positivity
Lijing Chen1,2, Jiuhui Jiang3, Xingshan Li2
1School of Psychology, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou, China.
Frontiers in Psychology
|April 16, 2021
Summary
Facial features resembling smiles, like maxillary dental protrusions, elicit positive social perceptions. These positive attitudes towards maxillary protrusions are consistent across different groups, suggesting a general social preference.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Dental Science
- Social Perception
Background:
- Smiles significantly influence social perception, but the impact of static facial features associated with smiles remains unclear.
- Maxillary dental protrusions, unlike mandibular ones, create smile-like facial features (increased teeth baring) even without active smiling.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whether individuals ascribe positive evaluations to non-genuine smile-associated facial features.
- To determine if maxillary dental protrusions are perceived more positively than mandibular protrusions.
Main Methods:
- Three experiments were conducted.
- Experiment 1: Participants rated facial photographs with maxillary and mandibular protrusions on smiling and emotional status.
- Experiments 2 & 3: Implicit Association Test (IAT) measured implicit attitudes toward faces with maxillary vs. mandibular protrusions, including an in-group/out-group analysis.
Main Results:
- Participants reported more positive feelings toward faces with maxillary protrusions compared to mandibular protrusions.
- No difference was found in the perception of the presence of a smile between the two types of protrusions.
- Positive attitudes toward maxillary protrusions were consistent regardless of participant group (in-group/out-group).
Conclusions:
- Static facial features associated with smiles, specifically maxillary dental protrusions, are viewed positively in social contexts.
- This positive perception appears independent of genuine emotional expression and in-group/out-group biases.
- Findings support a social-function account for the positive evaluation of these facial characteristics.
Keywords:
Implicit Association Testimplicit attitudemandibular protrusionmaxillary protrusionsmilesocial-function accountMore Related Videos
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