Adolescence has been characterized as a period of heightened sensitivity to social contexts. However, adolescents vary in how their social contexts affect them. According to neurobiological susceptibility models, endogenous, biological factors confer some individuals, relative to others, with greater susceptibility to environmental influences, whereby more susceptible individuals fare the best or worst of all individuals, depending on the environment they encounter (e.g., high vs. low parental warmth). Until recently, research guided by these theoretical frameworks has not incorporated direct measures of brain structure or function to index this sensitivity. Drawing on prevailing models of adolescent neurodevelopment and a growing number of neuroimaging studies on the interrelations among social contexts, the brain, and developmental outcomes, we review research that supports the idea of adolescent neurobiological susceptibility to social context for understanding why and how adolescents differ in development and well-being. We propose that adolescent development is shaped in part by brain-based individual differences in sensitivity to social contexts – be they positive or negative – such as those created through relationships with parents/caregivers and peers. As such, we recommend that future research measure brain function and structure to operationalize susceptibility factors that moderate the influence of social contexts on developmental outcomes.

In 2 studies, the authors developed and validated of a new set of standardized emotion expressions, which they referred to as the University of California, Davis, Set of Emotion Expressions (UCDSEE). The precise components of each expression were verified using the Facial Action Coding System (FACS). The UCDSEE is the first FACS-verified set to include the three "self-conscious" emotions known to have recognizable expressions (embarrassment, pride, and shame), as well as the 6 previously established "basic" emotions (anger, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness, and surprise), all posed by the same 4 expressers (African and White males and females). This new set has numerous potential applications in future research on emotion and related topics.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) involves widespread difficulties in social interaction, communication, and behavioral flexibility. Consequently, individuals with ASD are believed to exhibit a number of unique personality tendencies, including a lack of insight into them. However, surprisingly little research has examined these issues. Study 1 compared self-reports of Big Five personality traits in adults with ASD (N=37) to those of typically developing (TD) adults (N=42). Study 2 examined whether any observed personality differences replicated in children/adolescents with ASD (N=50) and TD controls (N=50) according to self- and parent reports. Study 2 also assessed level of self-insight in individuals with ASD relative to TD individuals by examining the degree to which self-reports converged with parent reports in terms of self-other agreement and self-enhancement (vs. self-diminishment) biases. Individuals with ASD were more Neurotic and less Extraverted, Agreeable, Conscientious, and Open to Experience. These personality differences replicated for (a) children, adolescents, and adults, (b) self- and parent reports, and (c) males and females. However, personality traits were far from perfect predictors of ASD vs. TD group membership, did not predict within-group variability in ASD symptom severity, and had differential links to maladjustment in the ASD and TD groups, suggesting that ASD represents more than just an extreme standing on trait dimensions. Finally, individuals with ASD had a tendency to self-enhance, and TD individuals, to self-diminish, but both groups showed comparable self-other agreement. Thus, individuals with ASD exhibit distinct personalities relative to TD individuals but may have a similar level of insight into them.

Researchers have argued that individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) use an effortful “systematizing” process to recognize emotion expressions, whereas typically developing (TD) individuals use a more holistic process. If this is the case, individuals with ASDs should show slower and less efficient emotion recognition, particularly for socially complex emotions. We tested this account by assessing the speed and accuracy of emotion recognition while limiting exposure time and response window. Children and adolescents with ASDs showed quick and accurate recognition for most emotions, including pride, a socially complex emotion, and no differences emerged between ASD and TD groups. Furthermore, both groups trended toward higher accuracy when responding quickly, even though systematizing should promote a speed-accuracy trade-off for individuals with ASDs.

Contempt is a powerful emotion. Marriages fail (Gottman, 1994), coworkers are shamed (Melwani & Barsade, 2011), terrorism is tended toward (Tausch et al., 2011). Despite its importance, contempt has not been investigated at the level of personality. The present research examines how our contemptuous reactions can be conceptualized and measured as a stable individual-difference variable with a range of theoretically predicted correlates. First, we introduce a measure of dispositional contempt, the tendency to look down on, distance, and derogate others who violate our standards. We then unpack the dynamics of dispositional contempt. Across six studies using self-report and emotion elicitation in student and MTurk samples (Ns = 165 to 1,368), we examined its (1) nomological network, (2) personality and behavioral correlates, and (3) implications for relationship functioning. Dispositional contempt was distinguished from tendencies toward related emotions and was most associated with dispositional envy, anger, and hubristic pride. Somewhat paradoxically, dispositional contempt was related to being cold and “superior,” with associations found with narcissism, other-oriented perfectionism, and various antisocial tendencies (e.g., Disagreeableness, Machiavellianism, racism), but was also related to being self-deprecating and emotionally fragile, with associations found with low self-esteem, insecure attachment, and feeling that others impose perfectionistic standards on oneself. Dispositional contempt predicted contemptuous reactions to eliciting film clips, particularly when targets showed low competence/power. Finally, perceiving one’s romantic partner as dispositionally contemptuous was associated with lower commitment and satisfaction. Taken together, results give a first look at the contemptuous person and provide a new organizing framework for understanding contempt.