Emotion and expression

 

Facial expression is the most basic type of human communication, and due to our acquaintance with the human face we can detect even the slightest change in emotion. Emotion, however, is not to be confused with expression; emotion is what you feel inside, and expression is what you show to others, such as a smile to convey happiness. Our ability to show our emotions through using facial expressions is learned at a very early age, and continues to develop until it becomes an integral part to our means of communication.

Because of the importance and complexity of facial expression as a part of communication, much research has been undertaken on the subject. One man who paved the way for scientists to try to understand more fully about human expression and emotion is Charles Darwin. His book ‘The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals’, published in 1872, dealt with many theories about the subject, and the value of his research and studies is unquestionable. Other people who have also developed theories about emotion and expression are William James, a late nineteenth century Harvard professor, and Silvan Tomkins, a mid twentieth century psychologist. However, scientific research on methods of non-verbal communication (including facial expression) is a difficult and slow experience. The process of studying how the human body communicates is very difficult to measure, due to the sheer number of possible postures and expressions that we can create. Using computer graphics to generate realistic human models that can recreate expressions is one possibility that can help scientists investigate this subject further. Other tools that are available to aid research on this are The Facial Action Coding System, or FACS, and the FACS Affect Interpretation Database (FACSAID). FACS is a method to measure facial expressions by identifying the muscular activity that occurs in facial appearance. FACSAID is a tool for understanding what the muscular actions that FACS measures are in terms of psychological concepts. 

Our intuitive knowledge of human emotion allows us to naturally assign certain expressions to our feelings; facial expressions convey something either about what our intentions are, or what our internal state is at that particular time. Across cultures, research has shown that people categorise emotions in similar ways, using the same facial expressions in response to particular emotion-inducing incidents. Other recent scientific research has concluded that facial expressions can be grouped into six main categories, although hundreds of other emotions are possible and are used by everyone everyday. FACS comes into use here to be able to recognise and group every possible facial expression. The main six categories of expressions are as follows: happy, sad, anger, fear, disgust and surprise.

Happy

Expressions conveying happiness are the most widespread and easily recognised. Happy expressions are messages conveying feelings of enjoyment, pleasure, contentment, a positive disposition and friendliness. Happiness can vary in intensity, from mildly happy through to extreme ecstasy. The Zygomatic Major and Minor muscles are responsible for pulling the mouth into a smile. They are also known as ‘the laughing muscles’. Happy expressions are the easiest to make and the most frequently used. Because of this they can also be used to hide other emotions, and to deceive or manipulate others.

 

Sad

Sad expressions are the opposite of happy ones. Sad expressions convey feelings of pain, discomfort, bereavement, depression and helplessness. The Depressor Anguli muscles pull down the corners of the mouth, creating the sad face.

 

 

Anger

Anger expressions are messages conveying feelings about hostility, threats and potential attacks, both physical and mental. Anger is generally always associated  with violence and aggression.

 

 

Fear

Fear expressions are messages conveying feelings about danger, threats, or being in a position where bodily harm is likely. Fear can vary in intensity from mild apprehension to absolute terror.

 

 

 

Disgust

Disgust expressions convey feelings about things that we find revolting and sickening, i.e. the body’s response to objects such as vomit or decaying matter, or other offensive materials.

 

 

Surprise

Surprise expressions are generally difficult to detect, as they occur so quickly. They convey feelings about amazement, or are in response to an unexpected event. Surprise is not to be confused with shock/startle, as the expression is quite different.

 

 

The expressions that I will concentrate on my animation system recreating are happiness, sadness, surprise and anger, as these are the most instantly recognizable of all of the facial expressions, and they are also the ones that are used the most frequently.

 

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