Emotional Expression: Advances in Basic Emotion Theory

Abstract

In this article, we review recent developments in the study of emotional expression within a basic emotion framework. Dozens of new studies find that upwards of 20 emotions are signaled in multimodal and dynamic patterns of expressive behavior. Moving beyond word to stimulus matching paradigms, new studies are detailing the more nuanced and complex processes involved in emotion recognition and the structure of how people perceive emotional expression. Finally, we consider new studies documenting contextual influences upon emotion recognition. We conclude by extending these recent findings to questions about emotion-related physiology and the mammalian precursors of human emotion.