Controlling for Response Biases Clarifies Sex and Age Differences in Facial Affect Recognition

Sex, age and education differences in facial affect recognition were assessed within a large sample (n = 7,320). Results indicate superior performance by females and younger individuals in the correct identification of facial emotion, with the largest advantage for low intensity expressions. Though there were no demographic differences for identification accuracy on neutral faces, controlling for response biases by males and older individuals to label faces as neutral revealed sex and age differences for these items as well. This finding suggests that inferior facial affect recognition performance by males and older individuals may be driven primarily by instances in which they fail to detect the presence of emotion in facial expressions. Older individuals also demonstrated a greater tendency to label faces with negative emotion choices, while females exhibited a response bias for sad and fear. These response biases have implications for understanding demographic differences in facial affect recognition.     

Children's standards for judging their own facial expressions of emotion

This study examined three- to seven-year-old children's abilities to recognize and label their own facial expressions of emotion. Each child posed four facial expressions (Happy, Sad, Angry, and Scared) which were photographed with a Polaroid camera. The child then selected each expression from the array of his/her own photos and labeled the facial expression of each photo. In addition to children's self-evaluations, the photo set's expressive content was evaluated by a panel of adult raters. Happy was the expression easiest for children to pose; Scared was the most difficult. Abilities involved in evaluating one's own facial expression (i.e., recognizing and labeling) appear not to be acquired simultaneously with the ability to pose the expression. Not all children conformed to adult standards in evaluating their own expressions. Nearly one-fifth of the children studied exhibited evidence of an idiosyncratic expressive scheme for at least one of their facial expressions.     

Multiple Messages: Facial Recognition Advantage for Compound Expressions

The impact of singular (e.g. sadness alone) and compound (e.g. sadness and anger together) facial expressions on individuals' recognition of faces was investigated. In three studies, a face recognition paradigm was used as a measure of the proficiency with which participants processed compound and singular facial expressions. For both positive and negative facial expressions, participants displayed greater proficiency in processing compound expressions relative to singular expressions. Specifically, the accuracy with which faces displaying compound expressions were recognized was significantly higher than the accuracy with which faces displaying singular expressions were recognized. Possible explanations involving the familiarity, distinctiveness, and salience of the facial expressions are discussed.     

Comparison of web and mail surveys in collecting illicit drug use data: a randomized experiment

This randomized experiment examined survey mode effects for self-reporting illicit drug use by comparing prevalence estimates between a Web-based survey and a mail-based survey. A random sample of 7,000 traditional-aged undergraduate students attending a large public university in the United States was selected to participate in the spring of 2001. Students were randomly assigned to self-administer a survey via the Web or U.S. mail. The Web survey produced a significantly higher response rate than the U.S. mail survey. The prevalence estimates of illicit drug use (lifetime and past year) did not differ significantly between the two survey modes. The findings provide preliminary evidence that Web and U.S. mail surveys produce similar results regarding illicit drug use among undergraduate students. Although additional research is needed involving more diverse samples, these findings bode well for using Web surveys in college-based research.     

Sexual Arousal and Sexual Fantasy: The Influence of Gender,and the Measurement of Antecedents and Emotional Consequences in Macau and the United States

ABSTRACT

Objectives: Cross-cultural research was conducted to elucidate the relative influences of culture and gender on human sexuality. Methods: 353 male and female undergraduate students from universities in the United States and Macau completed self-report measures assessing sexual fantasy and arousal. Results: Males reported significantly more frequent sexual fantasy/arousal than females. Additionally, significant differences in the age of initial sexual arousal were found. Males from the United States reported the earliest age of initial arousal, followed by males from Macau, females from the United States, and females from Macau. Males from each region reported a significantly younger age of initial sexual fantasy than females within the same region. The Macau group reported significantly less frequent sexual arousal than the U.S. group. Conclusions: Sexual fantasy and arousal are susceptible to cultural and gender-based influences, whose strength varies by outcome measures.     

Civic Literacy and Social Work Education: Results From a Multi-Site Study

Given the decline in civic literacy among Americans, social work educators can no longer assume that students come prepared with the civic knowledge necessary for competent advocacy or policy practice. This article examines rates of civic knowledge among social work students at four social work education programs across the United States (U.S.). Findings indicate that although social work students score higher than the general U.S. adult population, their civic knowledge scores are still low, with nearly a third of these students falling in the failing range. Results suggest that social work students need additional content on civic knowledge.     

SEGMENTED ASSIMILATION AMONG MEXICANS IN THE SOUTHWEST

This article examines segmented assimilation among foreign-born and U.S.-born Mexicans. Using the 2000 census, this article investigates how immigrants' length of residence in the United States and nativity affect the earnings and self-employment outcomes of low- and high-skilled Mexican men and women in the Southwest. Findings reveal that the earnings of low-skilled, foreign-born Mexicans decrease as immigrants reside in the United States longer and are generally lower among the U.S. born than the foreign born. In contrast, the earnings of high-skilled, foreign-born Mexicans increase as immigrants reside in the United States longer and are generally higher among U.S.-born Mexicans than foreign-born Mexicans. Moreover, self-employment participation decreases as immigrants reside in the United States longer and is lower among the U.S. born than the foreign born, regardless of skill. Since self-employment results in lower earnings, a decline in self-employment indicates economic progress. Furthermore, men are generally better off than women. Drawing from segmented assimilation theory, findings support the "downward assimilation" hypothesis among low-skilled Mexicans and the "Anglo-conformity" hypothesis among high-skilled Mexicans. Overall, this research provides evidence of intragroup differences in segmented assimilation among foreign-born and U.S.-born Mexicans in the Southwest.     

Nonverbal Decoding Skills and Relationship Well-Being in Adults

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the relation between nonverbal decoding skills and relationship well-being. Sixty college students were administered tests of their abilities to identify the affective meanings in facial expressions and tones of voice. The students also completed self-report measures of relationship well-being and depression. Correlational analyses indicated that errors in decoding facial expressions and tones of voice were associated with less relationship well-being and greater depression. Hierarchical regression revealed that nonverbal decoding accuracy was significantly related to relationship well-being even after controlling for depression.     

Is there any merit to the merit-based immigration system? What Sub-Saharan African immigrant labor and housing market outcomes tell us about U.S. economic and immigration systems

For decades, U.S. immigration policy debates have centered on creating a merit-based system limiting entry to high-skilled immigrants. Yet the emphasis on merit-based immigration ignores the fact that high-skilled immigrants already enter the United States in merit-based immigration assume high-skilled immigrants benefit the U.S. economy because they are better able than low-skilled immigrants to translate skills into economic success. Using Sub-Saharan (Black) African immigrants' labor and housing market outcomes, I show that meritocracy only partially explains U.S. labor and housing outcomes, leaving a merit-based system unlikely to address America's economic needs. The majority of immigrants to the U.S. are non-White, and racial discrimination in the labor market results in occupational and wage disadvantages in the U.S. Due to the public charge rule, high skilled immigrants may be less likely to get their visas renewed or green card applications approved because of these labor market disadvantages. Without stable visa status, high-skilled immigrants will be less likely to make long-term economic investments in the United States—an important way of contributing to the U.S. economy. Together, research indicates that U.S. immigration reform will not work without first enacting policy addressing racial disparities in economic systems.     

Gender and College Opportunities: Changes Over Time in the United States and Japan

The authors examine the rise of the two-year college and changes in enrollment patterns between two-year and four-year colleges by sex in the United States and Japan since 1960. Notably, the chances of a woman who attended college of entering a four-year college were less in 1980, in both the U. S. and Japan, than they were in 1960. Channeling large numbers of women into two-year colleges perpetuates occupational sex segregation. Further, it alleviates pressure for competition for professional jobs. The desire to reduce the number of individuals competing for professional jobs was a factor in the build-up of the two-year college. Problems associated with overeducation are evident in both the U. S. and Japan. The authors argue that the function of the community college is to prepare students to enter the kinds of jobs that are available in highly industrialized societies.     

Emotion Recognition in Nonverbal Face-to-Face Communication

The perception of emotional facial expressions may activate corresponding facial muscles in the receiver, also referred to as facial mimicry. Facial mimicry is highly dependent on the context and type of facial expressions. While previous research almost exclusively investigated mimicry in response to pictures or videos of emotional expressions, studies with a real, face-to-face partner are still rare. Here we compared facial mimicry of angry, happy, and sad expressions and emotion recognition in a dyadic face-to-face setting. In sender-receiver dyads, we recorded facial electromyograms in parallel. Senders communicated to the receivers—with facial expressions only—the emotions felt during specific personal situations in the past, eliciting anger, happiness, or sadness. Receivers mostly mimicked happiness, to a lesser degree, sadness, and anger as the least mimicked emotion. In actor-partner interdependence models we showed that the receivers’ own facial activity influenced their ratings, which increased the agreement between the senders’ and receivers’ ratings for happiness, but not for angry and sad expressions. These results are in line with the Emotion Mimicry in Context View, holding that humans mimic happy expressions according to affiliative intentions. The mimicry of sad expressions is less intense, presumably because it signals empathy and might imply personal costs. Direct anger expressions are mimicked the least, possibly because anger communicates threat and aggression. Taken together, we show that incidental facial mimicry in a face-to-face setting is positively related to the recognition accuracy for non-stereotype happy expressions, supporting the functionality of facial mimicry.     

Immigrating for status in late life: Effects of globalization on Filipino American veterans

In this article we examine the late-life immigration of Filipino American veterans who have recently been awarded U.S. citizenship based on their military service to the United States during World War II. Based on data collected with 27 Filipino American veterans, we found that the primary motivation for veterans' immigration from the Philippines in late life is economic. When Filipino veterans decide to come to the United States, they do so to collect the financial benefits of citizenship and for the recognition and status it brings, especially within the family. In immigrating, Filipino American veterans live with considerable uncertainty about what the future holds, but at the same time they accrue power and status that ensures their continued centrality in their families. Such action enables them to maintain their independence in old age. The phenomenon of late-life immigration among Filipino American veterans is a case study in globalization and the fluid identities that elders maintain in moving back and forth between these linked worlds.     

Recognition of Facial Expressions of Emotion is Related to their Frequency in Everyday Life

Cross-cultural and laboratory research indicates that some facial expressions of emotion are recognized more accurately and faster than others. We assessed the hypothesis that such differences depend on the frequency with which each expression occurs in social encounters. Thirty observers recorded how often they saw different facial expressions during natural conditions in their daily life. For a total of 90 days (3 days per observer), 2,462 samples of seen expressions were collected. Among the basic expressions, happy faces were observed most frequently (31 %), followed by surprised (11.3 %), sad (9.3 %), angry (8.7 %), disgusted (7.2 %), and fearful faces, which were the least frequent (3.4 %). A significant amount (29 %) of non-basic emotional expressions (e.g., pride or shame) were also observed. We correlated our frequency data with recognition accuracy and response latency data from prior studies. In support of the hypothesis, significant correlations (generally, above .70) emerged, with recognition accuracy increasing and latency decreasing as a function of frequency. We conclude that the efficiency of facial emotion recognition is modulated by familiarity of the expressions.     

When immigrants are not migrants: counting arrivals of the foreign born using the U.S. census

"This paper compares characteristics of recent immigrant arrivals in the United States using two measures from the decennial U.S. census: the came-to-stay question and the migration question.... Among recent arrivals, defined as those who reported they came to stay in the quinquennium preceding the census, a large number were resident in the United States five years before the census date. Furthermore, the proportion of recent arrivals present in the United States five years before the census increased between 1975-1980 and 1985-1990.... Generally, in both the 1975-1980 and 1985-1990 cohorts, those resident in the United States five years before the census have significantly less schooling and lower incomes than those who were abroad."     

Recognition of Facial Expressions of Negative Emotions in Romantic Relationships

Previous research has demonstrated that individuals who were accurate at recognizing facial expressions of emotions reported better relationships with family and friends. The purpose of the present study was to test whether the ability to recognize facial expressions of negative emotions predicted greater relationship satisfaction with their romantic relationships and whether this link was mediated by constructive responses to conflict. Participants currently involved in a romantic relationship completed a validated performance measure of recognition of facial expressions and afterwards reported on the responses they engaged in during conflict with their romantic partner and rated their romantic relationship satisfaction. Results showed that accurate recognition of facial expressions of negative emotions (anger, contempt, disgust, fear, and sadness) predicted less conflict engaging behaviors during conflict with their romantic partners (but not positive problem solving and withdrawal), which in turn predicted greater relationship satisfaction. The present study is the first to show that the ability to recognize facial expressions of negative emotions is related to romantic relationship satisfaction and that constructive responses to conflict such as less conflict engaging behaviors, mediate this process.     

Earnings mobility of first and "1.5" generation Mexican-origin women and men: a comparison with U.S.-born Mexican-Americans and non-Hispanic whites

"This study addresses the following questions: Are Mexican immigrants closing the earnings gap with greater time in the United States, compared to U.S.-born Mexican Americans and non-Hispanic whites? What factors are most important in determining their earnings? How are earnings determinants different for women versus men, and those who came to the United States as children, versus those who came as adults and those born in the United States?... With greater time in the United States, male immigrants achieve average earnings comparable to U.S.-born Mexican Americans, but not to non-Hispanic whites, controlling for human capital variables. With greater time in the United States, female immigrants approach the number of hours of paid work of U.S.-born women, but not the earnings received per hour. Gains in earnings associated with age, time in the United States, and English proficiency differ by gender, reflecting structural differences in the labor market."     

Mimicry and the Judgment of Emotional Facial Expressions

Lipps (1907) presented a model of empathy which had an important influence on later formulations. According to Lipps, individuals tend to mimic an interaction partner's behavior, and this nonverbal mimicry induces—via a feedback process—the corresponding affective state in the observer. The resulting shared affect is believed to foster the understanding of the observed person's self. The present study tested this model in the context of judgments of emotional facial expressions. The results confirm that individuals mimic emotional facial expressions, and that the decoding of facial expressions is accompanied by shared affect. However, no evidence that emotion recognition accuracy or shared affect are mediated by mimicry was found. Yet, voluntary mimicry was found to have some limited influence on observer' s assessment of the observed person's personality. The implications of these results with regard to Lipps' original hypothesis are discussed.     

Efficacy of a Facial Emotion Training Program for Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Twenty-five high-functioning, verbal children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders (ASD; age range 8–15 years) who demonstrated a facial emotion recognition deficit were block randomized to an active intervention (n = 12) or waitlist control (n = 13) group. The intervention was a modification of a commercially-available, computerized, dynamic facial emotion training tool, the MiX by Humintell©. Modifications were introduced to address the special learning needs of individuals with ASD and to address limitations in current emotion recognition programs. Modifications included: coach-assistance, a combination of didactic instruction for seven basic emotions, scaffold instruction which included repeated practice with increased presentation speeds, guided attention to relevant facial cues, and imitation of expressions. Training occurred twice each week for 45–60 min across an average of six sessions. Outcome measures were administered prior to and immediately after treatment, as well as after a delay period of 4–6 weeks. Outcome measures included (a) direct assessment of facial emotion recognition, (b) emotion self-expression, and (c) generalization through emotion awareness in videos and stories, use of emotion words, and self-, parent-, and teacher-report on social functioning questionnaires. The facial emotion training program enabled children and adolescents with ASD to more accurately and quickly identify feelings in facial expressions with stimuli from both the training tool and generalization measures and demonstrate improved self-expression of facial emotion.     

On U.S. Foreign Policy in the Balkans in the 1990s: Spotlight on Croatia

In the 1990s, despite a change of administrations, U.S. policy towards the Balkans remained consistent. Post-Gulf War, the United States urged Europe to take the lead, but ultimately humanitarian considerations forced the United States to take an active, military role. Within the U.S. government, a struggle between ``incrementalism' and a longer-term ``visionary approach' characterized internal debate. Incrementalism ultimately prevailed. The framework for U.S. policy decisions, especially in the early 1990s, led the United States to active involvement, including a lack of consensus in the United Nations on the use of force. Events, culminating in the ``Washington Agreement', led Croatia to seeing that its interests coincided with those of Bosnian Croats and Muslims. Only later did Croatian and U.S. interests diverge. Since Dayton, U.S. focus in Croatia has been on democratization, human rights, and the implementation of the accords. As U.S. Balkan policy evolved, seeing a stable European future for the region became a fundamental security interest of the United States. The Balkan Wars contributed significantly to changing perceptions of the transatlantic relationship and of the U.S. global role.     

Korean Social Work Students’ Attitudes Toward Homosexuals

For this article, the Hudson and Ricketts Index of Attitudes toward Homosexuality (IAH) was used to measure levels of homophobia in a convenience sample of 124 students enrolled in social work programs in two major universities in the Republic of South Korea. The results indicated that BSW and MSW Korean students had high levels of homophobia, particularly in comparison to U.S. samples. In-class discussion of homosexuality was found to be significantly associated with lower levels of homophobia. The authors review these and other research findings and discuss implications for social work education in South Korea and the United States.