Smile

Historical background

Many biologists think the smile originated as a sign of fear. Primalogist Signe Preuschoft traces the smile back over 30 million years of evolution to a "fear grin" stemming from monkeys and apes who often used barely clenched teeth to portray to predators that they were harmless. Biologists believe the smile has evolved differently among species and especially among humans.

Biology is not the only academic discipline that interprets the smile. Those who study kinesics view the smile as an affect display. It can communicate feelings such as: love, happiness, pride, contempt, and embarrassment. More info: The Psychology of Human Smile, The Smile

Duchenne smile

A laughing smile with teeth showing and mouth open.

A Duchenne smile contracts the zygomatic muscles of the cheek and eye, forming crow's feet. The crow's feet indicate that the smile is genuine and that the smiler is truly happy. It was discovered by and is named after Guillaume Duchenne.

Gallery

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  The painting Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci.

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  Girl with closed mouth smile.

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  Girl with open mouth smile.

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  Politicians and leaders are often shown smiling as this is considered a sign of hospitality and confidence. With President Gerald Ford U.S. Presidents began smiling in their official portrait photos.

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  Artwork on this ball is a common abstract representation of a smiling face.

See also

• Laughter
• Emotion
• Emoticon
• Facial Action Coding System
• Frown
• Facial expression
• Smiley
• Social Psychology

Further reading

• Conniff, R. (2007). What's behind a smile? Smithsonian Magazine, 38,46-53.
• Miller, Professor George A., et. al. Overview for "smile." Retrieved 12 December 2003 from this page.
• Ottenheimer, H.J. (2006). The anthropology of language: An introduction to linguistic anthropology. Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworh.

Duchenne smile

• Freitas-Magalhães, A. (2006). The Psychology of human smile. Oporto: University Fernando Pessoa Press.
• Ekman, P., Davidson, R.J., & Friesen, W.V. (1990). The Duchenne smile: Emotional expression and brain psysiology II. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 58, 342-353. Cited in: Russell and Fernandez-Dols, eds. (1997).
• Russell and Fernandez-Dols, eds. (1997). The Psychology of Facial Expression. Cambridge. ISBN 0521587964.

External links

• Facial Emotion Expression Lab
• See examples of genuine, false, and contempt smiles
• Spot The Fake Smile on BBC Science & Nature
• Expressions of Positive Emotion in Women's College Yearbook Pictures and Their Relationship to Personality and Life Outcomes Across Adulthood.
• BBC News: Scanner shows unborn babies smile