Approach-withdrawal and cerebral asymmetry: Emotional expression and brain physiology: I.

TLDR

The study aims to assess patterns of hemispheric activation during happiness and disgust by combining facial behavior measurement with simultaneous brain electrical activity recording. This was achieved by measuring observable facial behavior and recording brain electrical activity simultaneously. Disgust produced right‑sided activation in frontal and anterior temporal regions, while happiness produced left‑sided activation in the anterior temporal region, and no asymmetry differences were observed in central or parietal areas or when aggregating positive versus negative film data, supporting the use of facial behavior to confirm emotion, the existence of emotion‑specific physiological patterns, and the role of anterior asymmetries in approach and withdrawal emotions.

Abstract

In this experiment, we combined the measurement of observable facial behavior with simultaneous measures of brain electrical activity to assess patterns of hemispheric activation in different regions during the experience of happiness and disgust. Disgust was found to be associated with right-sided activation in the frontal and anterior temporal regions compared with the happy condition. Happiness was accompanied by left-sided activation in the anterior temporal region compared with disgust. No differences in asymmetry were found between emotions in the central and parietal regions. When data aggregated across positive films were compared to aggregate negative film data, no reliable differences in brain activity were found. These findings illustrate the utility of using facial behavior to verify the presence of emotion, are consistent with the notion of emotion-specific physiological patterning, and underscore the importance of anterior cerebral asymmetries for emotions associated with approach and withdrawal.