Emotional face recognition when a colored mask is worn: a cross-sectional study

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Cognitive Science
• Developmental Psychology

Background:

• Limited research exists on how face masks affect children's emotional recognition.
• The influence of mask color on facial expression perception is unexplored in both children and adults.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the effect of face mask presence and color on the recognition of basic emotional expressions (fear, anger, sadness, neutrality).
• To examine age-related differences (first-graders, fifth-graders, young adults) in emotion recognition with and without masks.

Main Methods:

• Participants judged emotional facial expressions under conditions with no mask, or with masks of various colors (pink, green, red, black, white).
• The study included children from first and fifth grades, as well as young adults.

Main Results:

• Face mask presence significantly impaired the recognition of sad and fearful expressions.
• Perception of angry and neutral faces was not significantly affected by mask presence.
• Mask color showed a slight, unsystematic modulation of emotion recognition, with no consistent patterns.
• No significant age-related variations were found in the impact of masks or mask colors on emotion recognition.

Conclusions:

• Face masks can hinder the recognition of specific negative emotions, particularly sadness and fear.
• Mask color does not appear to be a critical factor in modulating emotion recognition.
• The findings suggest that the impact of face masks on emotional perception is consistent across different age groups studied.