The Effects of Hemispheric Asymmetries and Depression on the Perception of Emotion

Abstract

The present study investigated hemispheric asymmetries in the perception of positive and negative emotion. The moderating effect of depression on hemispheric asymmetries was also examined. Forty undergraduates were presented with happy and sad faces using a bilateral visual half-field design. Subjects were classified as depressed or nondepressed based on scores on the Beck Depression Inventory. For nondepressed subjects, a right hemisphere advantage emerged for the speed of processing open and close-mouth sad expressions. For depressed subjects a right hemisphere advantage emerged for the speed of processing open-mouth sad expressions. In addition, a right hemisphere advantage for accuracy in identifying sad expressions was found for all subjects. No visual field differences were found for processing happy expressions.There are currently two competing theories regarding hemispheric asymmetries in the perception of facial expressions. The dominant theory (right hemisphere theory) proposes that the right hemisphere is superior to the left hemisphere in the processing of all emotional expressions. The alternate theory, a valence-based theory, originated from studies of mood changes following unilateral brain damage (e.g., Gainotti, 1972) and predicts a right hemisphere advantage in the processing of negative expressions versus a left hemisphere advantage in the processing of positive expressions (Davidson, 1 Final version published in Brain and Cognition 32, 67-82 (1996).

Gender differences in regional cerebral activity during sadness

“…Furthermore, sad mood induction was associated with decelerated left visual field processing (right hemisphere) [Lavadas et al, 1984]. Hemispheric asymmetries have also been shown in the processing of sad vs. happy facial expressions, with a right hemisphere advantage in processing speed for sad expressions [Moretti et al, 1996]. In general, studies of facial and verbal emotion perception have provided evidence for the right hemispheric dominance, as well as for valencerelated asymmetries.…”

Dissociating Prelexical and Postlexical Processing of Affective Information in the Two Hemispheres: Effects of the Stimulus Presentation Format

“…This is a well-established finding, at least with respect to negative emotional valence. Empirical evidence is provided by studies in which words (Bryden & MacRae, 1988;Hartley, Ireland, Arnold, & Spencer, 1991;Richards, French, & Dowd, 1995), pictures (Johnsen & Hugdahl, 1993;Moretti, Charlton, & Taylor, 1996), or film clips (Wittling, 1995) were presented lateralized to healthy subjects; by neuropsychological investigations of patients with unilateral brain damage (Mandal, Tandon, & Asthana, 1991;Schmitt, Hartje, & Willmes, 1997); by psy-chophysiological studies using electrophysiological recordings (Laurian, Bader, Lanares, & Oros, 1991;Pihan, Altenmüller, & Ackermann, 1997;Spence, Shapiro, & Zaidel, 1996) or positron emission tomography measuring regional brain activation (George et al, 1996;Gur, Skolnick, & Gur, 1994;Lane et al, 1997); and by neurological investigations with the intracarotid sodium amytal test (Ahern et al, 1991).…”

Cultural variation in hemifacial asymmetry of emotion expressions

“…happiness), however, were found to induce either a left hemispheric or bilateral advantage (see Borod, 1992). Support for diVerential hemispheric involvement as a function of emotion type was drawn from clinical (Borod, Martin, Alpert, Brozgold, & Welkowitz, 1993;Mandal, Borod, Asthana, Mohanty, Mohanty, & KoV, 1999) as well as experimental (Davidson, 1984;Reuter-Lorenz & Davidson, 1981; see for a review by Moretti, Charlton, & Taylor, 1996) studies, with no consensus about the left hemispheric role in the (a) regulation of positive emotions, (b) control of social display rules, and (c) inhibition of aVect, especially negative, states.…”