Personal Nonverbal Repertoires in facial displays and their relation to individual differences in social and emotional styles

ABSTRACT

Research on individual differences in the occurrence of relatively frequent facial displays is scarce. We examined whether (1) individuals’ spontaneous facial expressions show a relatively frequent pattern of AUs (referred to as Personal Nonverbal Repertoires or PNRs), and (2) whether these patterns are associated with self-reported social and emotional styles. We videotaped 110 individuals during 10 minutes in 2 different contexts and manually FACS coded 18 AUs. Subsequently, participants completed questionnaires regarding individual differences in social and emotional styles: BIS/BAS, interpersonal orientation, conflict handling style, and emotion regulation (reliably reduced to 4 factors: Yielding, Forcing, Compromising and Extraversion). We found five patterns of PNRs: Smiling (AU6,12), Partial Blinking, Drooping (AU41, 63), Tensed (AU1 + 2, 4, 7, 23), and Eyes widening (AU5). Three PNRs showed weak to moderate correlations with individual differences in social and emotional styles (based on EFA): Smiling is associated with Compromising and Extraversion, Drooping with Yielding, and Partial Blinking is negatively correlated with Extraversion. These findings suggest that some of an individual’s frequent facial action patterns are associated with specific styles in social and emotional interactions.

KEYWORDS:

• Personal Nonverbal Repertoires
• facial displays
• individual differences
• social and emotional styles

Acknowledgments

We want to thank Corinne Brenner, Laura Ilgen and Sara Makkenze for their invaluable support in carrying out this study, and Han van der Maas and Robert Zwitser for their statistical advice.

Disclosure statement

In accordance with Taylor & Francis policy and my ethical obligation as a researcher, I am reporting that I have a financial and/or business interest in a company that may be affected by the research reported in the enclosed paper. I have disclosed those interests fully to Taylor & Francis, and I have in place an approved plan for managing any potential conflicts arising from that involvement. Herman A. Ilgen.

Data Availability Statement

The data that support the findings of this study are openly available in Open Science framework at https://osf.io/dj7km/?view_only=13f397c89d5c4350a23a4fb50adb39e3.