Feeling Blue

We use facial expressions to communicate our deepest emotions. But to get the message across, whomever we’re aiming our fear, love or pain at needs to be able to tell one expression from another. Pictured on the top row, a man is pulling similar faces but expressing very different emotions: disgust (left) and anger (middle). These may be easily confused, but researchers used a combination of image analysis and computer graphics to create a facial 'blueprint' (right) highlighting expressive differences in his lower jaw. By contrast, the East Asian woman (bottom row) is using changes around her expressive eyes to convey the same emotions (bottom right). Ethnic and cultural differences may explain how some facial expressions are 'lost in translation', often delaying accurate diagnosis of neurological disorders, or pain in trauma victims. Being aware of these differences may help to keep communication from breaking down, even when words fail us.

Written by John Ankers

John Ankers

Writer

A former researcher in systems biology, John is now an online biology tutor and professional coach supporting the wellbeing of scientists and NHS professionals. He's writing, too, of course.

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• Image from work by Rachael Jack and Philipe Schyns
• School of Psychology and Institute of Neuroscience and Psychology, University of Glasgow, UK
• Image copyright Elsevier 2015
• Published in Current Biology, July 2015