Department of Cognitive Psychology, Humboldt, University Berlin, Rudower Chaussee 18, 12489 Berlin, Germany.
Int J Psychophysiol. 2012 Jul;85(1):116-24. doi: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2011.04.007. Epub 2011 May 13.
Briefly presented (e.g., 10 ms) emotional stimuli (e.g., angry faces) can influence behavior and physiology. Yet, they are difficult to identify in an emotion detection task. The current study investigated whether identification can be improved by focusing participants on their internal reactions. In addition, we tested how variations in presentation parameters and expression type influence identification rate and facial reactions, measured with electromyography (EMG). Participants made force-choice identifications of brief expressions (happy/angry/neutral). Stimulus and presentation properties were varied (duration, face set, masking-type). In addition, as their identification strategy, one group of participants was instructed to use their bodily and feeling changes. One control group was instructed to focus on visual details, and another group received no strategy instructions. The results revealed distinct EMG responses, with greatest corrugator activity to angry, then neutral, and least to happy faces. All variations in stimulus and presentation properties had robust and parallel effects on both identification and EMG. Corrugator EMG was reliable enough to statistically predict stimulus valence. However, instructions to focus on the internal states did not improve identification rates or change physiological responses. These findings suggest that brief expressions produce a robust bodily signal, which could in principle be used as feedback to improve identification. However, the fact that participants did not improve with internal focus suggests that bodily and feeling reactions are either principally unconscious, or that other ways of training or instruction are necessary to make use of their feedback potential.
简要呈现（例如，10 毫秒）的情绪刺激（例如，愤怒的面孔）可以影响行为和生理。然而，在情绪检测任务中很难识别它们。本研究调查了通过关注参与者的内部反应是否可以提高识别能力。此外，我们还测试了呈现参数和表情类型的变化如何影响识别率和面部反应，这些反应通过肌电图（EMG）进行测量。参与者对短暂的表情（快乐/愤怒/中性）进行力选择识别。刺激和呈现属性有所变化（持续时间、面孔集、掩蔽类型）。此外，一组参与者被指示使用身体和感觉变化作为他们的识别策略，一个对照组被指示关注视觉细节，另一个组没有接受策略指示。结果显示出明显的 EMG 反应，皱眉肌对愤怒的反应最大，其次是中性，对快乐的反应最小。刺激和呈现属性的所有变化对识别和 EMG 都有强大且平行的影响。皱眉肌 EMG 足够可靠，可以对刺激效价进行统计预测。然而，专注于内部状态的指示并没有提高识别率或改变生理反应。这些发现表明，短暂的表情会产生强烈的身体信号，原则上可以用作反馈来提高识别能力。然而，参与者没有通过内部焦点来提高的事实表明，身体和感觉反应要么主要是无意识的，要么需要其他方式的训练或指导来利用它们的反馈潜力。
