Emotion and face processing in people with facial paralysis.
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Investigating the influence of facial paralysis on the understanding of emotions and faces.
IRAS ID
326230
Contact name
Stephanie Rossit
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of East Anglia
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
Emotion recognition is a vital part of social interaction, enabling us to communicate effectively. Embodied cognition theories suggest that emotion recognition is aided by the unconscious imitation of facial expressions. In line with this, it is assumed that facial movement restrictions may negatively affect emotion recognition. Facial palsy is the most common condition affecting the facial nerve, causing weakness of the facial muscles, lack of facial movement, and difficulty forming facial expressions. Currently, little research has explored the impact of facial paralysis on emotion perception. Moreover, results are inconsistent, with some studies reporting facial palsy impairs emotion processing, while others suggest that is not the case. This inconsistency may stem from methodical differences. For example, one study found that on a simple recognition task, where participants selected a single emotional label for an expression, no impairments were found. However, when the task difficulty increased, recognition impairments were present. To improve our understanding of emotion perception in facial palsy, we have devised a more sensitive test of emotion perception. We will recruit 24 facial palsy patients, without a history of other neurological conditions, such as stroke, from a clinical site in the East of England. A series of tests will be conducted, examining their perception of various forms of emotional expression, including facial and vocal expression. This will involve rating the emotional content of a range of different expressions, for example, how happy, sad or angry an expression is. They will also complete tests of their facial motion and vision, and questionnaires assessing their mood, fatigue and facial pain. The completion of all of the tests is expected to take 2 hours. It is hoped that this research will improve our knowledge of the cognitive and social impacts of facial paralysis, helping to address the conflict in the literature.
REC name
East of England - Cambridge South Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
24/EE/0207
Date of REC Opinion
20 Mar 2025
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion