Intimate relationship experience predicts sensitivity to facial emotional expressions
Research Poster Arts & Humanities 2025 Graduate ExhibitionPresentation by Katie Billetdeaux
Exhibition Number 165
Abstract
Facial expressions provide non-verbal signals in social interactions. Emerging adulthood is a key period for developing sensitivity to socially complex expressions, like those that provide important signals about the status of romantic/sexual partnerships (Motta-Mena & Scherf, 2017). We hypothesized that ongoing experience in intimate relationships during emerging adulthood is associated with increased sensitivity to perceive complex facial expressions. Participants (N=410, ages 18-25) completed a relationship questionnaire and emotional expression perception task. The relationship questionnaire asked participants to self-report the presence of ongoing romantic and/or sexual relationships. We derived three scores: relationship duration (in months), relationship commitment, and relationship intensity (duration x commitment). Facial emotional expression stimuli consisted of 4 basic (angry, fearful, happy, sad) and 4 socially complex (betrayed, brokenhearted, contempt, sexual interest) expressions taken from the CEED database (Benda & Scherf, 2020). During each trial, participants observed a neutral expression and a morphed expression from the same actor, selecting the image that displayed “more expression.” Perceptual thresholds were computed separately for each expression. Approximately half (58.3%) of the participants reported being in a romantic and/or sexual relationship. Despite no group differences in perceptual thresholds for basic or complex expressions between those in a relationship and those not, we were interested in whether ongoing relationship experience predicted expression sensitivity. Among individuals in a current relationship, both relationship duration and intensity negatively predicted thresholds to detect basic and complex expressions. This suggests that as people gain experience in intimate partnerships, they become increasingly sensitive to both basic and complex facial expressions.
Importance
Our findings reflect that intimate relationships influence the way we actually see each other, not just the way we feel about each other. We observed these findings in emerging adults (ages 18-25) who are just learning to navigate intimate relationships. This work is relevant for understanding the challenges and successes of emerging adulthood, a time of great transition. It can also help explain the kinds of social consequences people might experience when they lack the opportunity to engage in intimate relationships.