Neural Mechanisms of Emotion Authenticity Recognition: an fMRI Study with Dynamic Facial Stimuli

Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre 

The ability to discern genuine from posed emotional expressions is crucial for social interactions, as it underpins trust, empathy, and relationship-building (Lange et al., 2022; Van Kleef & Côté, 2022). Facial expressions serve as a universal language of emotion (Ekman, 1993), but they can be deliberately manipulated, complicating interpretation (Crivelli et al., 2015). Misjudging posed expressions as genuine can result in adverse social consequences, including misunderstandings and reduced emotional well-being (Miles & Johnston, 2007). This highlights the importance of accurately interpreting emotion authenticity. Despite its relevance, research in this area has been limited, with an overreliance on posed stimuli that lack ecological validity (Dawel et al., 2017). This study leverages dynamic stimuli to examine the neural mechanisms underlying emotion authenticity recognition, addressing critical methodological gaps (Namba et al., 2018; Zinchenko et al., 2018).