Universality Thesis and Behavioral Ecology View of Facial Displays

This article explores the universality thesis and behavioral ecology view of facial displays and their role in social interaction. It discusses the cultural context, behavior, and psychology behind facial expressions, highlighting the diversity and spontaneity of these expressions. The article also examines the challenges and advancements in research on the universality of facial expressions.

Running Head: UNIVERSALITY THESIS AND BEHAVIORAL ECOLOGY VIEW OF
FACIAL DISPLAYS
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Facial Displays and Emotion, Including the Universality Thesis and Behavioral Ecology View of
Facial Displays (BECV)
Facial expressions play a pivotal role in making the interactions of a human being more
conclusive, effective and expressive. The trait of displaying feelings and emotions is present in
all living things, but in humans, it is present in the most detailed and explicit manner. The
internal makeup of the human body in terms of psychology, internal biological processes and
other scientific details are rigid, but an outward expression for these is never so rigid. Instead,
human facial expressions are quite flexible and serve as an expressive tool. Behavioural ecology
has referred to facial actions as a socially and culturally learnt trait. Facial expressions make
interaction effective and allow social negotiation (Crivelli & Fridlund, 2017).
Diversity is intrinsically related to the facial expression. Monotony or similarity cannot
exist in the facial expressions. This trend is prevalent both in humans and other animals. This
view strengthens the idea that the facial expressions are not guided by the brain, mind and
psychology in entirety. The absence of expressions in robots and presence, if any, of only similar
expressions, draws a clear line between humans and robots. A complete makeup of a personality
and its role in making the facial expressions explicit is quite vivid. Ancient studies suggest that
development of a particular expression for a particular trait happened only by dint of extensive
and prolonged usage. In this way, one particular expression became universal for an emotion,
situation or condition. This stance is advocated by the Basic Emotions Theory as well. This
theory has played a dynamic role in helping in research on the topic (Keltner, Tracy, Sauter,
Cordaro & McNeil, 2016; Ekman, 2017)

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Behaviour ecology view countered the aforementioned BET. This study developed
primarily from animal studies. It serves as the cornerstone of evolutionary biology as well. This
stance argues that human facial expressions displays are not expressions of anything. There is no
sense associated with morphology. They also do not stop or depend on any specific internal state
(Sivarth and Cheney, 2017; Keltner et al., 2016). According to BECV, human faces are social
tools (such as many animal exhibits). These social tools are used as an emergency work in social
negotiation, and their function depends on the state and context of the ongoing social interaction
and the participants involved, and their stories of interaction.
The basic theory of emotions (BET) goes back to its Western roots through Aristotle's
first approaches but is more due to the continuing vision of René Descartes Hellenic for emotion
versus reason. Descartes described "emotions" as factional entities that disturb animal life in the
body, and become intense enough to corrupt rationality and promote uncertainty. Charles Le
Brune was the first to connect emotions to the face by describing the proper and anatomical
makeup of each Cartesian emotion (Sivarth and Cheney, 2017). The links passed down, and the
personality theorist Sylvan Tomkin incorporated them into his quasi-cybernetic Effect Theory
which after the central changes had been made, became the most famous and Researched BET
variant it: Ekman’s Neuro cultural theory.
In many cognitive sciences, BET is considered genuine because of its origin as the
wisdom received from Descartes and Lebron. A survey of hundreds of well-known researchers
found that 80% felt that some facial expressions were universal expressions of emotion (Sivarth
and Cheney, 2017). For example, in studies of the amygdala, the ventricle is commonly used to
refer to fear (Brethel-Haurwitz et al., 2018). The supposed categorical facial expressions of
emotions are useful in many areas like Al Avatar and social Robotics algorithms (Mosko, 2014).

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The basic emotions theory is famous, but it has a lot of challenges because it is an essentialist
theory (Mosko, 2014). Their essentialisms restrict their ability to integrate real-world data
beyond their constraints. Essentials are a doctrine that each object or substance has
characteristics that give it certain or special form. The theory (BET) is considered as essentialist
because it explains the existence of undeniable feelings of detachment and fundamental qualities
that determine each emotion.
There have been challenges to the basic vision of faces and emotions, and there is new
evidence of small communities. The historical and monthly approach to the basic emotion theory
of facial expressions can be explained as an example of a small indigenous community. Papua
New Guinea Truperandros are subsistence gardeners and fishers and believe that magic is
involved in almost every aspect of their lives. They believe that supernatural beings such as evil
spirits, ghosts and flying magicians have an impact on them and can cause their misery and death
— object (Mosko, 2014). According to them, souls can leave shrubs at night, perch in the yam,
or hide in the study of the house. The important thing to keep in mind here is that these tacos are
called "cocola", which means fear in the language of the attackers. So, if the intruder of
Trobriand intends to harm others or steal their mothers, he will be rejected by hiding the magic
of "Kaiju" or the magic of mammals (spirit), both of which have the potential to cause sickness
and even death.
So according to basic emotions theory if the interloper will approach a yam house and
will face a mwamwala, a spirit, he will likely feel the fear, Kokoda, when this fear will be
triggered, it will release the flow of some neurologically programmed changes, the facial affect
program, that would include a prewired Universal expression of the instigating emotion for
example for fear it would be a gasping face. The gasping face would be a designated facial action

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comprising the BET facial expressions of emotions which according to BET is produced and
understood across all cultures, pan-culturally (Ekman, 2017)
The BET hypothesis has explained a holistic approach that the way in which indigenous
peoples must interact with magic, for example, is to express the face of fear. This thesis suggests
that when environmental catalysts, who share intercultural objects, activate them, the world's
innate and innate inner feelings will be expressed in external forms of global prototypes. The
thesis of Inclusiveness shows that some facial actions and "facial expressions of emotion"
convey underlying feelings, which can be denied, personal, such as happiness, sadness, anger,
disgust, and fear. These facial expressions are recognised in all cultural cultures. In addition,
these facial expressions are evolutionary. (Crivelli & Fridlund, 2018).
The facial displays work as effective and dynamic tools of social influence. These can be
used to influence the other people both coercively as well as in an amicable manner. Social
influence is one of the most needed traits of the present world. A person who is unable to
influence the people does not achieve significant composure in life. In order to stay oriented and
guided by life goals, the element of influence is significantly important. These facial expressions
that have intricate ability to impact and influence are essentially diverse.
No one culture or civilisation has the god-gifted power to assert their own meanings and
working of facial expression. Presently the Western society tends to believe in their inherent and
intrinsic superiority over other nations. This makes them assert themselves in almost every field.
There lies no doubt about the fact that Western societies have progressed in different fields but
giving a Western explanation to Asia or African or Arabic facial displays is a sheer mistake. This
makes the fact evident that facial expressions have a cultural context and are not independent of

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it. In this regard, asserting meanings and interpretations to these expressions in the fixed
paradigm of a single culture will hide many realities behind that expression.
An important aspect of the facial expressions is that these are spontaneous ones. They
show the abrupt outflow of the emotions. At times, these emotions are guided, and a learned eye
can catch the pretence behind those gestures. True expressions are always spontaneous. Some
emotions that have the capability to produce spontaneous expressions include anger, disgust,
sadness, and surprise. Apart from the cultural context of the facial expressions, some expressions
also have a universal appeal. This is because that cultural context of some emotions is the same
everywhere. For example, the public proposal of a man to a lady may not receive public assent in
orthodox societies, and therefore an intentional suppression of expressions might be there. In
contrast to this, the love bond of parents and children is the same everywhere. In this regard,
some situations and facial expressions can be gauged on a universal parameter, but others cannot
be weighed upon the same standards.
In the various past frameworks regarding the universality of the facial expressions have
been presented. To counter these frameworks, various paradigms negating the universal nature of
facial expressions were also presented. None of these paradigms or frameworks suffices the
needs of research in absolute terms. Emotions and subsequent facial expressions are quite diffuse
terms and phenomena. These cannot be contained in one or the other paradigm in a wholesome
and inclusive manner. Therefore, a broad level and wider consensus have not been achieved on
either of these frameworks.
In order to address the aforementioned research dilemma a handful of innovations and
advancements are made in the research patterns, hypothesis, experimental process, and deduction
phase in order to reach a conclusive end. As mentioned above the process of facial expression is

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highly diffusible and is loosely knitted. This fact hinders the potential researches in this field.
Not only this but also it reiterates that the context of the study has the potential to reveal the
universal or the cultural approach of facial expressions as deemed essential (Crivelli & Fridlund,
2018).
The cultural constraints play the most dynamic and agile role in the development of the
contextual framework of the facial expression. The element of globalisation is slowly and
steadily reverting this trend. The interconnectedness of people and their communication has
increased manifold the potential interaction of the people. This interaction has led to an ever-
increasing and intensifying knowledge of each other's culture. The process of enculturation
prevails then. In the context of the facial expressions, knowledge of another culture does not
float in without a potential adoption from the recipient. This process is slow and steadily and
there arises a point where facial expression for one particular emotion or condition becomes
universal. This can be summed up as to say that the cultural context of a particular emotion when
faced with cross-cultural interaction, can either develop into a universal expression or potentially
mingle with another expression to form a universal expression (Crivelli, Russell, Jarillo &
Fernández-Dols, 2017).
Apart from the social and cultural influence upon the facial expression, behaviour has
also retained significant control over this domain. Behaviour is quite a broad and vast term. A
couple of things merge and collaborate to make a compact form of behaviour. The most
important consideration as far as the behaviour of a person is considered the personality type of
that person.
Advancement in psychology and other behavioural studies have come forth with different
types of personalities. Each personality type has a particular behaviour. Though the

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individualistic patterns do exist in human beings, these studies have enabled researchers to come
up with gross generalisations that are accurate and precise as well. Personality traits of a person
define the behaviour of that person. This behaviour in return shapes the facial expression of that
person. As the variations shown in the behaviours regarding facial expression are either not so
sharp or steep or does not occur much frequently; therefore, this area of study is often kept
neglected and unattended. Only a handful of people show anomalous behaviour; that is why the
behavioural dependence of facial expressions is not taken into account most often (Gendron,
Crivelli & Barrett, 2018).
An important aspect of studies conducted to locate either universal or culturally, socially
and behaviorally dependent nature of facial expressions is that these studies are biased. It has
happened rarely that a study aiming at proving the universal nature of facial expression ended up
rendering the subject as culturally, socially or behaviorally dependent. In this regard, almost all
the research conducted on this topic, so far, has approached the subject with a biased and
predestined approach. These details have placed strong hindrances in the path of changing the
entire paradigm or framework of the research.
Psychology of the person also plays a dynamic role in defining the course of facial
expression. The same emotion may witness different facial expressions from the same person
when the state of mind of the person is different. A surprise may not bring forth surprised
gestures on the face of a depressed and stressed person. Likewise, a mentally immature person
can respond either too violently or too joyfully for happenings of the ordinary type. In this way,
psychology plays a dynamic role both in feeling the intensity of the emotion and subsequently
responding with expression (Jack, Crivelli & Wheatley, 2018).

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The way the facial expressions are dependent upon the aforementioned factors and
determinants, similarly the interpretation of the facial expressions is closely interlinked with
these factors. Neither commencement of these expression nor study of interpretation of their
details can be done in an isolated system. Various forces acting on the course of production of
gestures and leading up to their interpretation have the tendency to alter the nature of the
expression in entirety. Neglecting influence of such powerful factors certainly is a sheer mistake
during the study. No facial expression can be studied in the absence of its cultural and social
context. Likewise ignoring mental state, psychological biases and prevalent environment for the
person will amount to the same error as discussed above.
In the end, this research has taken into account various researches and theoretical
paradigms into account to dig deeper into the topic. This has led to making a significant
contribution to already present literature on the subject. Not only this but also it has opened
several potential topics for future research in the given field.
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