Dynamic versus static facial color changes: Evidence for terminal color dominance in expression recognition

Facial color is closely linked to the perception of emotion, with reddish tones often being associated with anger. Although previous studies have shown that static reddish facial tones enhance the perception of anger, whether dynamic changes in facial color further amplify this effect remains unclear. This study investigated how differences in facial color influence the perception of expression using a judgment task that involved morphed facial stimuli (fearful to angry). The participants evaluated facial expressions under two conditions: faces with dynamic color changes and faces with static colors. Experiment 1 compared redder (CIELAB a*+) faces to original-colored faces, and Experiment 2 compared greener (CIELAB a*-) faces to original-colored faces. Experiment 3 compared redder faces to original-colored faces under rapid facial color change conditions. None the experiments revealed significant differences between dynamic and static facial colors; however, faces with a final reddish color (higher a* value) were more likely to be perceived as angry. These findings suggest that the final facial color influences the perception of anger independent of whether the color change is dynamic or static. Our findings support the idea that the recognition of anger is modulated by the relationship between an angry expression and the color red. This study provides a new perspective on the interaction between facial expression and facial color, suggesting that the final facial color plays a significant role in facial expression judgment.