Quantification of nonverbal synchrony using linear time series analysis methods: Lack of convergent validity and evidence for facets of synchrony

Nonverbal synchrony describes coordination of the nonverbal behavior of two interacting partners. Additionally, it seems to be important in human interactions, such as during psychotherapy. Currently, there are several options for the automated determination of synchrony based on linear time series analysis methods (TSAMs). However, investigations into whether the different methods measure the same construct have been missing. In this study, N = 84 patient-therapist dyads were videotaped during psychotherapy sessions. Motion energy analysis was used to assess body movements. We applied seven different TSAMs and recorded multiple output scores (average synchrony, maximum synchrony, and frequency of synchrony; in total, N = 16 scores). Convergent validity was examined using correlations of the output scores and exploratory factor analysis. Additionally, two criterion-based validations were conducted: investigations of concordant validity with a more generalized nonlinear method, and of the predictive validity of the synchrony scores for improvement in interpersonal problems at the end of therapy. We found that the synchrony measures only partially correlated with each other. The factor analysis did not support a common-factor model. A three-factor model with a second-order synchrony variable showed the best fit for eight of the selected synchrony scores. Only some synchrony scores were able to predict improvement at the end of therapy. We concluded that the considered TSAMs do not measure the same synchrony construct, but different facets of synchrony: the strength of synchrony of the total interaction, the strength of synchrony during synchronization intervals, and the frequency of synchrony.

Estimating smile intensity: A better way

Both the occurrence and intensity of facial expressions are critical to what the face reveals. While much progress has been made towards the automatic detection of facial expression occurrence, controversy exists about how to estimate expression intensity. The most straight-forward approach is to train multiclass or regression models using intensity ground truth. However, collecting intensity ground truth is even more time consuming and expensive than collecting binary ground truth. As a shortcut, some researchers have proposed using the decision values of binary-trained maximum margin classifiers as a proxy for expression intensity. We provide empirical evidence that this heuristic is flawed in practice as well as in theory. Unfortunately, there are no shortcuts when it comes to estimating smile intensity: researchers must take the time to collect and train on intensity ground truth. However, if they do so, high reliability with expert human coders can be achieved. Intensity-trained multiclass and regression models outperformed binary-trained classifier decision values on smile intensity estimation across multiple databases and methods for feature extraction and dimensionality reduction. Multiclass models even outperformed binary-trained classifiers on smile occurrence detection.

Social hierarchies and emotions: cortical prefrontal activity, facial feedback (EMG), and cognitive performance in a dynamic interaction

In the present research, we manipulated the perceived superior/inferior status during a competitive cognitive task. In two experiments, we created an explicit and strongly reinforced social hierarchy based on incidental rating on an attentional task. Based on our hypotheses, social rank may influence nonverbal cues (such as facial mimic related to emotional response), cortical lateralized activity in frontal areas (brain oscillations), and cognitive outcomes in response to rank modulation. Thus, the facial mimic (corrugators vs. zygomatic muscle activity), frequency bands (delta, theta, alpha, beta), and real cognitive performance [(error rate (ER); response times (RTs)] were considered. Specifically, a peer-group comparison was enrolled and an improved (experiment 1, N = 29) or decreased (experiment 2, N = 31) performance was artificially manipulated by the experimenter. Results showed a significant improved cognitive performance (decreased ER and RTs), an increased zygomatic activity (positive emotions), and a more prefrontal left-lateralized cortical response in the case of a perceived increased social ranking. On the contrary, a significant decreased cognitive performance (increased ER and RTs), an increased corrugators activity (negative emotions), and a less left-lateralized cortical response were observed as a consequence of a perceived decreased social ranking. Moreover, the correlational values revealed a consistent trend between behavioral (RTs) and EMG and EEG measures for both experiments. The present results suggest that social status not only guides social behavior, but it also influences cognitive processes and subjects' performance.

Measuring nonverbal behavior in clinical interactions: A pragmatic guide

OBJECTIVE

Understanding nonverbal behavior is key to the research, teaching, and practice of clinical communication. However, the measurement of nonverbal behavior can be complex and time-intensive. There are many decisions to make and factors to consider when coding nonverbal behaviors.

METHODS

Based on our experience conducting nonverbal behavior research in clinical interactions, we developed practical advice and strategies for coding nonverbal behavior in clinical communication, including a checklist of questions to consider for any nonverbal coding project.

RESULTS

We provide suggestions for beginning the nonverbal coding process, operationalizing the coding approach, and conducting the coding.

CONCLUSION

A key to decision-making around nonverbal behavior coding is establishing clear research questions and using these to guide the process.

PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

The field needs more coding of nonverbal behavior to better describe what happens in clinical interactions, to understand why nonverbal behaviors occur, and to determine the predictors and consequences of nonverbal behaviors in clinical interactions. A larger evidence base can inform better teaching practices and communication interventions.

The link between perception of clinical empathy and nonverbal behavior: The effect of a doctor's gaze and body orientation

OBJECTIVES

Clinical empathy is considered to be one of the most important skills for medical professionals. It is primarily conveyed by nonverbal behavior; however, little is known about the importance of different types of cues and their relation to engagement and sincerity as possible correlates of perceived clinical empathy (PCE). In this study, we explored the effect of doctor's gaze and body orientation on PCE with the help of 32 video vignettes.

METHODS

Actors impersonating medical interns displayed different combinations of gaze and body orientation while uttering an empathetic verbal statement. The video vignettes were evaluated in terms of the perceived clinical and general empathy, engagement and sincerity.

RESULTS

A principal component analysis revealed a possible single-factor solution for the scales measuring the two types of empathy, engagement and sincerity; therefore, they were subsumed under general perceived empathy (GPE). An analysis of variance showed a main effect of gaze and body orientation, with a stronger effect of gaze, on GPE. We subsequently performed a linear random effects analysis, which indicated possible gender-related differences in the perception of gaze.

CONCLUSIONS

The outcomes of our experiment confirm that both gaze and body orientation have an influence on the GPE. The effect of gaze, however, appears to be gender-dependent: in the experiment, males were perceived as slightly more empathetic with patient-centered gaze, while for females averted gaze resulted in higher GPE scores.

PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

The findings are directly relevant in the context of medical communication training. Perception of clinical empathy supports medical information transfer, diagnosis quality and other patient outcomes.

Nonverbal and paraverbal behavior in (simulated) medical visits related to genomics and weight: a role for emotion and race

It is crucial to examine patient reactions to genomics-informed approaches to weight management within a clinical context, and understand the influence of patient characteristics (here, emotion and race). Examining nonverbal reactions offers a window into patients' implicit cognitive, attitudinal and affective processes related to clinical encounters. We simulated a weight management clinical interaction with a virtual reality-based physician, and experimentally manipulated patient emotional state (anger/fear) and whether the physician made genomic or personal behavior attributions for weight. Participants were 190 overweight females who racially identified as either Black or White. Participants made less visual contact when receiving genomic information in the anger condition, and Black participants exhibited lowered voice pitch when receiving genomic information. Black participants also increased their interpersonal distance when receiving genomic information in the anger condition. By studying non-conscious nonverbal behavior, we can better understand the nuances of these interactions. Trial registry clinicaltrials.gov NCT01888913.

Hand Gesture and Mathematics Learning: Lessons From an Avatar

A beneficial effect of gesture on learning has been demonstrated in multiple domains, including mathematics, science, and foreign language vocabulary. However, because gesture is known to co-vary with other non-verbal behaviors, including eye gaze and prosody along with face, lip, and body movements, it is possible the beneficial effect of gesture is instead attributable to these other behaviors. We used a computer-generated animated pedagogical agent to control both verbal and non-verbal behavior. Children viewed lessons on mathematical equivalence in which an avatar either gestured or did not gesture, while eye gaze, head position, and lip movements remained identical across gesture conditions. Children who observed the gesturing avatar learned more, and they solved problems more quickly. Moreover, those children who learned were more likely to transfer and generalize their knowledge. These findings provide converging evidence that gesture facilitates math learning, and they reveal the potential for using technology to study non-verbal behavior in controlled experiments.

Social trait judgment and affect recognition from static faces and video vignettes in schizophrenia

Social impairment is a core feature of schizophrenia, present from the pre-morbid stage and predictive of outcome, but the etiology of this deficit remains poorly understood. Successful and adaptive social interactions depend on one's ability to make rapid and accurate judgments about others in real time. Our surprising ability to form accurate first impressions from brief exposures, known as "thin slices" of behavior has been studied very extensively in healthy participants. We sought to examine affect and social trait judgment from thin slices of static or video stimuli in order to investigate the ability of schizophrenic individuals to form reliable social impressions of others. 21 individuals with schizophrenia (SZ) and 20 matched healthy participants (HC) were asked to identify emotions and social traits for actors in standardized face stimuli as well as brief video clips. Sound was removed from videos to remove all verbal cues. Clinical symptoms in SZ and delusional ideation in both groups were measured. Results showed a general impairment in affect recognition for both types of stimuli in SZ. However, the two groups did not differ in the judgments of trustworthiness, approachability, attractiveness, and intelligence. Interestingly, in SZ, the severity of positive symptoms was correlated with higher ratings of attractiveness, trustworthiness, and approachability. Finally, increased delusional ideation in SZ was associated with a tendency to rate others as more trustworthy, while the opposite was true for HC. These findings suggest that complex social judgments in SZ are affected by symptomatology.

Talking bodies: nonverbal behavior in the assessment of depression severity

BACKGROUND

Evaluations of clinical depression are traditionally based on verbal information. Nonverbal expressive behavior, however, being associated with a person's reflexive responses, may reveal negative emotional or social processes that are not under complete control of the patients. However, investigations of nonverbal behavior in the evaluation of depressed patients are still scarce. This study examines the nonverbal behaviors of a group of Brazilian patients, associating their nonverbal behavior with severity of depression.

METHODS

Forty depressed patients were evaluated at baseline (T0) and after a two-week transcranial direct current stimulation treatment (T1), according to rating scales and through a 21-category Ethogram for assessment of the frequency of nonverbal behaviors displayed during an interview.

RESULTS

Behaviors that were related to negative feelings and social disinterest decreased with corresponding clinical improvement and were associated with increased severity of symptoms at T0 and greater negative affect and dissatisfaction at T1. Pro-social behaviors were associated with milder symptoms at T0 and increased after treatment. Facial, head and hand expressive movements stood out as important indicators because of their associations with severity of depression.

LIMITATIONS

Duration of behaviors was not assessed and there was not a healthy control group with which to compare the findings.

CONCLUSIONS

These results support the usefulness of nonverbal behavior as an evaluation technique in the assessment of clinical depression.

DAVID: An open-source platform for real-time transformation of infra-segmental emotional cues in running speech

We present an open-source software platform that transforms emotional cues expressed by speech signals using audio effects like pitch shifting, inflection, vibrato, and filtering. The emotional transformations can be applied to any audio file, but can also run in real time, using live input from a microphone, with less than 20-ms latency. We anticipate that this tool will be useful for the study of emotions in psychology and neuroscience, because it enables a high level of control over the acoustical and emotional content of experimental stimuli in a variety of laboratory situations, including real-time social situations. We present here results of a series of validation experiments aiming to position the tool against several methodological requirements: that transformed emotions be recognized at above-chance levels, valid in several languages (French, English, Swedish, and Japanese) and with a naturalness comparable to natural speech.

Teachers' nonverbal behaviors influence children's stereotypic beliefs

The current research tested whether differences in teachers' nonverbal behaviors influence children's intergroup attitudes and stereotypic beliefs. In this study, 5- to 8-year-old participants (N = 96) were assigned to novel groups (marked by T-shirt color) and then viewed interactions between teachers and pairs of students who were also members of the novel groups. Across four interactions, the teacher directed positive nonverbal behaviors toward students from one group and directed negative nonverbal behaviors toward students from another group. After viewing the interactions, participants were presented with pairs of new students from the two novel groups and were asked three types of test questions. When participants were asked who was smarter, they selected new students from the group that had received positive nonverbal behaviors regardless of their own group membership. However, when asked who they would like to befriend, only participants who were assigned to the group that received positive behaviors selected ingroup members. On trials where participants were asked to select a partner on an academic task, participants' selections did not differ from chance. This study shows that teachers' nonverbal behaviors may be one source of children's academic stereotypes, including negative stereotypes about groups to which they belong. Moreover, these findings highlight the importance of subtle social cues in guiding children's beliefs about social groups.

Social consequences of subclinical negative symptoms: An EMG study of facial expressions within a social interaction

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

The negative symptoms of schizophrenia are related to lower social functioning even in non-clinical samples, but little is known about the distinct social consequences of motivational and expressive negative symptoms. In this study we focused on expressive negative symptoms and examined how these symptoms and varying degrees of pro-social facial expressiveness (smiling and mimicry of smiling) relate to the social evaluations by face-to-face interaction partners and to social support.

METHODS

We examined 30 dyadic interactions within a sample of non-clinical participants (N = 60) who were rated on motivational and expressive negative symptoms with the Clinical Assessment Interview for Negative Symptoms (CAINS). We collected data on both interaction partners' smiling-muscle (zygomaticus major) activation simultaneously with electromyography and assessed the general amount of smiling and the synchrony of smiling muscle activations between interaction partners (mimicry of smiling). Interaction partners rated their willingness for future interactions with each other after the interactions.

RESULTS

Interaction partners of participants scoring higher on expressive negative symptoms expressed less willingness for future interactions with these participants (r = -0.37; p = 0.01). Smiling behavior was negatively related to expressive negative symptoms but also explained by motivational negative symptoms. Mimicry of smiling and both negative symptom domains were also associated with participants' satisfaction with their social support network.

LIMITATIONS

Non-clinical sample with (relatively) low levels of symptoms.

CONCLUSIONS

Expressive negative symptoms have tangible negative interpersonal consequences and directly relate to diminished pro-social behavior and social support, even in non-clinical samples.

Clients' psychosocial communication and midwives' verbal and nonverbal communication during prenatal counseling for anomaly screening

OBJECTIVES

This study focuses on facilitation of clients' psychosocial communication during prenatal counseling for fetal anomaly screening. We assessed how psychosocial communication by clients is related to midwives' psychosocial and affective communication, client-directed gaze and counseling duration.

METHODS

During 184 videotaped prenatal counseling consultations with 20 Dutch midwives, verbal psychosocial and affective behavior was measured by the Roter Interaction Analysis System (RIAS). We rated the duration of client-directed gaze. We performed multilevel analyses to assess the relation between clients' psychosocial communication and midwives' psychosocial and affective communication, client-directed gaze and counseling duration.

RESULTS

Clients' psychosocial communication was higher if midwives' asked more psychosocial questions and showed more affective behavior (β=0.90; CI: 0.45-1.35; p<0.00 and β=1.32; CI: 0.18-2.47; p=0.025, respectively). Clients "psychosocial communication was not related to midwives" client-directed gaze. Additionally, psychosocial communication by clients was directly, positively related to the counseling duration (β=0.59; CI: 0.20-099; p=0.004).

CONCLUSIONS

In contrast with our expectations, midwives' client-directed gaze was not related with psychosocial communication of clients.

PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

In addition to asking psychosocial questions, our study shows that midwives' affective behavior and counseling duration is likely to encourage client's psychosocial communication, known to be especially important for facilitating decision-making.

Gestures convey content: an exploration of the semantic functions of physicians' gestures

OBJECTIVES

Gestures' semiotic role in clinical interactions is unexplored. Using theoretical underpinnings from basic research on gesture, our objective was to investigate the semantic contributions of physicians' gestures during interactions with patients with a different native language.

METHODS

We analyzed gestures-speech composites in eight videotaped interactions between physicians and patients during treatment plan discussions. Using microanalysis of face-to-face dialogue and conversation analysis, we identified physicians' gestures, decided whether they served semantic functions, and explored their relationship with the accompanying speech.

RESULTS

Using the operational definitions developed here resulted in high reliability. Physicians gestured at a mean rate of 6.5 gestures per 100 words. Approximately half of the gestures served semantic functions, with referents that were concrete (e.g., actions, body parts) and abstract (e.g., regularity, timelines). Gestures conveyed topic information, but speech conveyed information about that topic and context for interpreting gestures' meaning.

CONCLUSION

Analyzing the semantic functions of gestures in clinical interactions is feasible. Physicians' gestures and speech formed integrated messages; the two modalities conveyed mutually dependent meanings.

PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

Physicians could become aware of the semiotic potential of gestures. However, conversational gestures lack conventional meanings and rely on the accompanying speech to provide necessary context for interpreting their meaning.

Judgments of Nonverbal Behaviour by Children with High-Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder: Can they Detect Signs of Winning and Losing from Brief Video Clips?

Typically developing children are able to judge who is winning or losing from very short clips of video footage of behaviour between active match play across a number of sports. Inferences from "thin slices" (short video clips) allow participants to make complex judgments about the meaning of posture, gesture and body language. This study extends the use of the thin slice research paradigm to children with high-functioning autism spectrum disorder (ASD). We tested 38 children with ASD, in two age groups: 15 participants aged 5-8 years and 23 participants aged 9-13 years. We found that the children with ASD had a rate of accuracy similar to that of typically developing peers tested in a previous study.

Nonverbal behaviors are associated with increased vagal activity in major depressive disorder: Implications for the polyvagal theory

BACKGROUND

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is associated with impairments in nonverbal behaviors (NVBs) and vagal activity. The polyvagal theory proposes that vagal activity regulates heart rate and NVBs by modulating a common anatomically and neurophysiologically discrete social engagement system. However, the association between these putative endophenotypes has not yet been explored. We hypothesize that in MDD, NVBs indicating positive affects and social interest and those indicating negative feelings and social disinterest could be associated with different patterns of vagal activity.

METHODS

For this cross-sectional study we recruited 50 antidepressant-free participants with moderate-to-severe MDD. Vagal activity was indexed by heart rate variability (HRV) measures, and positive and negative nonverbal behaviors (NVBs) by a validated ethogram. Associations between NVBs and HRV were explored by bivariate analyses and multivariable models were adjusted by age, gender, depression severity, and self-reported positive and negative affects.

RESULTS

HRV measures indicative of higher vagal activity were positively correlated with positive NVBs exhibited during the clinical interview. Conversely, NVBs related to negative affects, low energy and social disinterest were not associated with HRV.

LIMITATIONS

Absence of a control group.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings highlight that the examined depression endophenotypes (nonverbal behaviors and vagal activity) are related, shedding light on MDD pathophysiology in the context of the polyvagal theory.

Wearing N95, Surgical, and Cloth Face Masks Compromises the Perception of Emotion

According to the familiar axiom, the eyes are the window to the soul. However, wearing masks to prevent the spread of viruses such as COVID-19 involves obscuring a large portion of the face. Do the eyes carry sufficient information to allow for the accurate perception of emotions in dynamic expressions obscured by masks? What about the perception of the meanings of specific smiles? We addressed these questions in two studies. In the first, participants saw dynamic expressions of happiness, disgust, anger, and surprise that were covered by N95, surgical, or cloth masks or were uncovered and rated the extent to which the expressions conveyed each of the same four emotions. Across conditions, participants perceived significantly lower levels of the expressed (target) emotion in masked faces, and this was particularly true for expressions composed of more facial action in the lower part of the face. Higher levels of other (non-target) emotions were also perceived in masked expressions. In the second study, participants rated the extent to which three categories of smiles (reward, affiliation, and dominance) conveyed positive feelings, reassurance, and superiority, respectively. Masked smiles communicated less of the target signal than unmasked smiles, but not more of other possible signals. The present work extends recent studies of the effects of masked faces on the perception of emotion in its novel use of dynamic facial expressions (as opposed to still images) and the investigation of different types of smiles.

Movement and Emotional Facial Expressions during the Adult Attachment Interview: Interaction Effects of Attachment and Anxiety Disorder

INTRODUCTION

Adult attachment is commonly associated with emotion regulation. Less is known about the nonverbal embodiment of adult attachment.

OBJECTIVE

We hypothesized that dismissing attachment is related to less movement and fewer facial expressions of emotions, whereas preoccupied attachment is associated with more negative emotional facial expressions. Moreover, the interaction of attachment and the presence of an anxiety disorder (AD) was explored.

METHODS

The sample included 95 individuals, 21 with AD without comorbidity, 21 with AD and comorbid major depression (AD-CD), and 53 healthy controls. We analyzed nonverbal behavior during a part of the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) asking about the family and parental figures. The movements of the interviewees were captured via Motion Energy Analysis. Facial expressions were coded according to the Facial Action Coding System using the OpenFace software. We compared individuals with secure, dismissing, and preoccupied states of mind (assessed with the AAI) with regard to the frequency and complexity of movements and the frequency of the facial expressions such as happy, sad, and contemptuous.

RESULTS

As expected, dismissingly attached individuals moved less often and with lower complexity than securely attached. For emotional facial expressions, a main effect of the disorder group and interaction effects of attachment by disorder were found. In the AD-CD group, dismissingly attached patients showed comparatively fewer happy facial expressions than securely attached individuals.

CONCLUSIONS

Reduced movement specifically seems to be related to dismissing attachment when interviewees talk about significant parental figures. Facial expressions of emotions related to attachment occurred when maladaptive emotion regulation strategies were intensified by a psychological disorder.

Automated Assessment of Pain: Prospects, Progress, and a Path Forward

Advances in the understanding and control of pain require methods for measuring its presence, intensity, and other qualities. Shortcomings of the main method for evaluating pain-verbal report-have motivated the pursuit of other measures. Measurement of observable pain-related behaviors, such as facial expressions, has provided an alternative, but has seen limited application because available techniques are burdensome. Computer vision and machine learning techniques have been successfully applied to the assessment of painrelated facial expression, suggesting that automated assessment may be feasible. Further development is necessary before such techniques can have more widespread implementation in pain science and clinical practice. Suggestions are made for the dimensions that need to be addressed to facilitate such developments.

Perceived Epistemic Authority (Source Credibility) of a TV Interviewer Moderates the Media Bias Effect Caused by His Nonverbal Behavior

The Media Bias Effect (MBE) represents the biasing influence of the nonverbal behavior of a TV interviewer on viewers' impressions of the interviewee. In the MBE experiment, participants view a 4-min made-up political interview in which they are exposed only to the nonverbal behavior of the actors. The interviewer is friendly toward the politician in one experimental condition and hostile in the other. The interviewee was a confederate filmed in the same studio, and his clips are identical in the two conditions. This experiment was used successfully in a series of studies in several countries (Babad and Peer in J Nonverbal Behav 34(1):57-78, 2010. 10.1007/s10919-009-0078-x) and was administered in the present research. The present investigation focused on the interviewer's source credibility and its persuasive influence. The viewers filled out questionnaires about their impressions of both the interviewer and the interviewee. A component of "interviewer's authority" was derived in PCA, with substantial variance in viewers' impressions of the interviewer. In our design, we preferred the conception of Epistemic Authority (Kruglanski et al. in Adv Exp Soc Psychol 37:345-392, 2005)-based on viewers' subjective perceptions for deriving authority status-to the conventional design of source credibility studies, where dimensions of authority are pre-determined as independent variables. The results demonstrated that viewers who perceived the interviewer as an effective leader demonstrated a clear MBE and were susceptible to his influencing bias, but no bias effect was found for viewers who did not perceive the interviewer as an effective leader. Thus, Epistemic Authority (source credibility) moderated the Media Bias Effect.

Does Less Optimal Nonverbal Communication with Peers Predict the Development of Depression in Adolescent Boys and Girls?

A Social Skills Deficit Model for depression in adolescence was tested, proposing that less optimal nonverbal behavior elicits negative reactions in peer partners, which in turn result in depressive symptoms. Adolescents (12–17 years of age) participated in videotaped same-sex interactions. Several positive and negative nonverbal behaviors were coded. Two analyses were conducted using longitudinal data collected in four waves. First, the predictive role of nonverbal communication for depressive symptoms was tested in a normative sample of 170 adolescent dyads without (mild) depression at wave 1 (48% girls). Second, in a subsample of 31 adolescents who developed (sub)clinical depression in wave 2–4, behaviors during peer interactions prior to the development of depression were compared with behaviors of 31 matched controls that did not show mild depression in any wave (55% girls). Only gazing behavior showed the expected relationships. In girls, less gazing in targets was related to less gazing in peers, and if this response occurred, it subsequently predicted later depressive symptoms of targets. The importance of gazing behavior was confirmed in the (sub)clinical sample where girls, prior to increases in depressive symptoms, gazed less and boys gazed more as compared to controls. Interaction partners of these girls and boys also responded with less gazing. The findings indicate that nonverbal social skills are related to the development of depression in youth, particularly in girls.

Automated patterns of head dynamics are associated with psychopathic traits in incarcerated women

Men with elevated psychopathic traits have been characterized by unique patterns of nonverbal communication, including more fixed and focused head positions during clinical interviews, compared to men scoring low on measures of psychopathy. However, it is unclear whether similar patterns of head dynamics help characterize women scoring high on psychopathic traits. Here, we utilized an automated detection algorithm to assess head position and dynamics during a videotaped clinical interview (i.e., the Psychopathy Checklist - Revised [PCL-R]) in a sample of n = 213 incarcerated women. PCL-R Total, Factor 1 (i.e., interpersonal and affective psychopathic traits), and Factor 2 (i.e., lifestyle/behavioral and antisocial/developmental psychopathic traits) scores were associated with a pattern of head dynamics indicative of a rigid head position. The current study extends analyses of nonverbal behavior studies in men to women and highlights how individuals with elevated psychopathic traits demonstrate unique nonverbal behaviors relative to individuals who score low on psychopathic traits. The implications and clinical value of these findings are discussed.

Social-touch and self-touch differ in hemodynamic response in the prefrontal cortex - a fNIRS study conducted during the coronavirus pandemic

Being touched by others (social-touch) and touching oneself (self-touch) are common nonverbal behaviors in everyday interaction. The commonalities and differences between these two types of touching behavior are of particular interest for conditions when social-touch is substantially restricted such as during the corona pandemic. Neuropsychologically, pleasant social-touch is associated with increased activation in frontal brain regions such as frontopolar, dorsolateral prefrontal (dlPFC), and orbitofrontal cortices (OFC). However, for these regions a deactivation has also been reported. Likewise, for self-touch the findings are controversial. Therefore, the aim of this study is to shed light on the controversial findings and to elucidate the relation between self-touch and social-touch. From 2021 to 2022, in a quasi-naturalistic setting, in forty-six participants brain oxygenation and deoxygenation was examined during social-touch and self-touch in frontal cortices applying functional NearInfraRed Spectroscopy (fNIRS). Social-touch compared to self-touch led to a significantly higher brain deoxygenation in the frontopolar areas and in parts of the dlPFC and OFC. In contrast, brain oxygenation in the PFC was significantly increased during self-touch compared to social-touch. The cerebral activation and deactivation pattern in a quasi-naturalistic setting indicates that self-touch cannot achieve the hedonic effects of social-touch, but it can influence internally self-regulating processes.

Trainee psychotherapists' emotion recognition accuracy during 1.5 years of psychotherapy education compared to a control group: no improvement after psychotherapy training

The ability to recognize and work with patients' emotions is considered an important part of most psychotherapy approaches. Surprisingly, there is little systematic research on psychotherapists' ability to recognize other people's emotional expressions. In this study, we compared trainee psychotherapists' nonverbal emotion recognition accuracy to a control group of undergraduate students at two time points: at the beginning and at the end of one and a half years of theoretical and practical psychotherapy training. Emotion recognition accuracy (ERA) was assessed using two standardized computer tasks, one for recognition of dynamic multimodal (facial, bodily, vocal) expressions and one for recognition of facial micro expressions. Initially, 154 participants enrolled in the study, 72 also took part in the follow-up. The trainee psychotherapists were moderately better at recognizing multimodal expressions, and slightly better at recognizing facial micro expressions, than the control group at the first test occasion. However, mixed multilevel modeling indicated that the ERA change trajectories for the two groups differed significantly. While the control group improved in their ability to recognize multimodal emotional expressions from pretest to follow-up, the trainee psychotherapists did not. Both groups improved their micro expression recognition accuracy, but the slope for the control group was significantly steeper than the trainee psychotherapists'. These results suggest that psychotherapy education and clinical training do not always contribute to improved emotion recognition accuracy beyond what could be expected due to time or other factors. Possible reasons for that finding as well as implications for the psychotherapy education are discussed.

Cross-modal co-occurrence analysis of nonverbal behavior and content words, vocal emotion and prosody in individuals with subclinical depression

BACKGROUND

Most related research focuses on a single variable of verbal and nonverbal behaviors independently without considering their associations. Therefore, it is important to understand subclinical depression in the entire population.

AIMS

This study investigated the cross-modal co-occurrence of nonverbal behavior with vocal emotions, prosody, and content words in individuals with subclinical depression.

METHODS

A total of 70 participants assigned to the subclinical depression and control groups participated in structured interviews. Elan software was used to layer, transcribe, and annotate materials. A support vector machine was used to confirm the two models.

RESULTS

Cross-modal co-occurrence analysis revealed that the subclinical depression group mainly exhibited strong relationships between the nonverbal behavior "holding hands" and the words including "conflict," "hope" and "suicide," while the control group exhibited strong relationship between the nonverbal behavior "holding hands" and the content words including "happy," "despair" and "stress," and strong relationships of more nonverbal behaviors with more positive and negative words. The "pause" and "hesitation" of prosody were strongly associated nodes with the subclinical depression group, while "pause" and "delight" (vocal emotion) were strongly associated nodes with the control group. The accuracy rates of the two models through support vector machine were high and could be confirmed.

CONCLUSIONS

The results of the cross-modal co-occurrence analysis revealed negative thoughts and moods of individuals with subclinical depression, whose nonverbal behavior was closely connected with verbal factors.