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The proximate mechanisms and ultimate functions of smiles

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 December 2010

Marc Mehu  and
Karim N'Diaye
Marc Mehu
Affiliation:
Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, University of Geneva, CH-1205 Geneva, Switzerland. marc.mehu@unige.chhttp://www.affective-sciences.org
Karim N'Diaye
Affiliation:
Research Center of the Brain and Spine Institute, Université Pierre et Marie Curie (UPMC), CNRS UMR 7225, INSERM UMR S 975, 75006 Paris, France. karim.ndiaye@upmc.fr
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Abstract

Niedenthal et al's classification of smiles erroneously conflates psychological mechanisms and adaptive functions. This confusion weakens the rationale behind the types of smiles they chose to individuate, and it obfuscates the distinction between the communicative versus denotative nature of smiles and the role of perceived-gaze direction in emotion recognition.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Information
Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 33 , Issue 6 , December 2010 , pp. 454 - 455
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2010

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