Meinhardt-Injac Bozana, Boutet Isabelle, Chaby Laurence, von Castell Christoph, Welsch Robin
Department of Developmental Psychology, Catholic University of Applied Sciences Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
School of Psychology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada.
PLoS One. 2025 May 8;20(5):e0323182. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0323182. eCollection 2025.
Accurately interpreting emotional states from facial expressions is crucial for effective social interactions. This study investigates age-related differences in interpersonal distance (IPD) regulation and emotion recognition using a virtual reality (VR) environment. We examined how younger and older adults adjust their IPD in response to emotional expressions from virtual agents.
Eighty participants, divided into older adults (OA) and younger adults (YA), took part in the study. Participants were immersed in a VR setup where they engaged in social interactions with happy or angry looking virtual agents. This behavioral task was complemented by a standardized emotion recognition task (ERT).
Results showed that both YA and OA preferred larger distances from angry-looking virtual agents compared to happy ones. No significant differences in IPD were found between the age groups. However, older adults were less accurate in recognizing facial expressions.
These findings suggest that older adults can effectively regulate their social distance despite potential challenges in emotion recognition. The study underscores the importance of considering cognitive, perceptual, and motivational factors when examining the dynamics of emotional recognition and interpersonal distance in social contexts.
从面部表情准确解读情绪状态对于有效的社交互动至关重要。本研究使用虚拟现实（VR）环境调查人际距离（IPD）调节和情绪识别方面的年龄差异。我们研究了年轻人和老年人如何根据虚拟代理的情绪表达来调整他们的人际距离。
80名参与者被分为老年人（OA）和年轻人（YA），参与了这项研究。参与者沉浸在一个VR设置中，在那里他们与看起来高兴或生气的虚拟代理进行社交互动。这项行为任务辅以标准化的情绪识别任务（ERT）。
结果表明，与看起来高兴的虚拟代理相比，年轻人和老年人都更喜欢与看起来生气的虚拟代理保持更大的距离。年龄组之间在人际距离上没有发现显著差异。然而，老年人在识别面部表情方面不太准确。
这些发现表明，尽管在情绪识别方面存在潜在挑战，但老年人能够有效地调节他们的社交距离。该研究强调了在研究社交情境中情绪识别和人际距离的动态时考虑认知、感知和动机因素的重要性。
