Emotion recognition training using composite faces generalises across identities but not all emotions

Abstract

Many cognitive bias modification (CBM) tasks use facial expressions of emotion as stimuli. Some tasks use unique facial stimuli, while others use composite stimuli, given evidence that emotion is encoded prototypically. However, CBM using composite stimuli may be identity- or emotion-specific, and may not generalise to other stimuli. We investigated the generalisability of effects using composite faces in two experiments. Healthy adults in each study were randomised to one of four training conditions: two stimulus-congruent conditions, where same faces were used during all phases of the task, and two stimulus-incongruent conditions, where faces of the opposite sex (Experiment 1) or faces depicting another emotion (Experiment 2) were used after the modification phase. Our results suggested that training effects generalised across identities. However, our results indicated only partial generalisation across emotions. These findings suggest effects obtained using composite stimuli may extend beyond the stimuli used in the task but remain emotion-specific.

Protocol for a between-group experimental study examining cultural differences in emotion processing between Malay and Caucasian adults with and without major depressive disorder

“…Recently, several different researchers have developed similar kinds of emotion processing training programmes and these have been found to generate positive outcomes when applied in depressed young adults, schoolchildren, nurses and violent offenders. [57][58][59][60][61] The capability to recognise emotions is important for successful social interaction and it facilitates social adjustment which inadvertently improves the quality of life. 58 Previous research has shown that those with MDD have difficulties with attention and information processing when an eye tracking device was used.…”

Emotional recognition training modifies neural response to emotional faces but does not improve mood in healthy volunteers with high levels of depressive symptoms

“…One possibility is that the emotional training task does not generalize to other situations in which any therapeutic effects of modified bias may be realized (e.g., social interactions). Although we know that the training effect transfers to other faces in an experimental context (e.g., the face task in Study 1, which employs different faces to the training task, see also Dalili et al, 2017), there is currently little evidence that this bias generalizes to real world encounters with others. A recent study of a similar bias modification task delivered online (Peters et al, 2017) to healthy participants showed little evidence of transfer of bias modification to a variety of cognitive tasks thought to be impacted by low mood (although there was weak evidence of transfer to measures of stress and a cognitive measure of anhedonia, particularly in those participants with higher baseline anxiety).…”

Feedback training can increase detection of happiness in ambiguous facial expressions in children and adults with autism spectrum disorders

“…Here we investigated whether it was possible to increase detection of happiness in relatively ambiguous expressions of low intensity happiness. The training procedure was based on that used in previous studies (Dalili et al, 2016;Penton-Voak et al, 2012;Penton-Voak et al, 2013). However, instead of using stimuli from morph sequences that spanned two emotional expressions, the stimuli ranged from one expression, through an ambiguous expression (created by averaging 7 expressions), to the corresponding anti-expression (an expression in which the features have moved in the opposite direction from the emotional expression; for example, eyebrows are raised rather than lowered, see Method section for technical details).…”

“…Recently a CBM procedure has been developed which aims specifically to modify biases in the perception of ambiguous facial expressions (Dalili, Schofield-Toloza, Munafò, & Penton-Voak, 2016;Penton-Voak, Bate, Lewis, & Munafò, 2012;Penton-Voak et al, 2013).…”