Subconscious facial expression mimicry is preserved in older adulthood.
It has been suggested that despite explicit recognition difficulties, implicit processing of facial expressions may be preserved in older adulthood. To directly test this possibility, the authors used facial electromyography to assess older (N=40) and young (N=46) adults' mimicry responses to angry and happy facial expressions, which were presented subliminally via a backward masking technique. The results indicated that despite not consciously perceiving the facial emotion stimuli, both groups mimicked the angry and happy facial expressions. Implications for emotion recognition difficulties in late adulthood are discussed.
Bailey
Phoebe E
PE
School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney NSW 2052, Australia. pbailey@psy.unsw.edu.au
Henry
Julie D
JD
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging; D004576:Electromyography; D005149:Facial Expression; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007100:Imitative Behavior; D008297:Male; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011930:Reaction Time; D014473:Unconscious, Psychology; D055815:Young Adult