Is There a Cultural Difference in How Americans and the English Smile?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the cultural differences in how Americans and the English smile, exploring the implications of these differences on emotional expression and cultural practices. It touches on psychological research and personal observations related to nonverbal communication.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Dacher Keltner suggests that Americans smile by drawing the corners of their lips up, while the English smile by drawing their lips back and up, which may convey different emotional meanings.
  • Some participants express skepticism about the characterization of Tom Cruise's smile as "terrific," indicating subjective interpretations of smiles.
  • One participant notes that cultural differences in emotional expression, such as smiling, may be as significant as differences in personal space and eye contact.
  • Another participant relates the discussion to gestures and postures, suggesting they also carry different meanings across cultures.
  • A participant raises a question about the universality of distinguishing between fake and genuine smiles across cultures, referencing a test they encountered.
  • Several participants share their experiences and scores from a smile recognition test, discussing the challenges of identifying fake smiles and the physiological differences between genuine and fake smiles.
  • One participant questions the validity of the theory by observing individuals displaying both "British" and "American" smiles, expressing doubt about the generalization.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants exhibit a mix of agreement and skepticism regarding the proposed differences in smiling between cultures. While some find the research interesting, others challenge its validity and express personal counterexamples.

Contextual Notes

The discussion reflects varying personal interpretations and experiences, highlighting the complexity of cultural expressions and the potential for subjective differences in understanding emotional cues.

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Dacher Keltner, a professor of psychology at the University of California at Berkeley, contends that Americans and the English smile differently. On this side of the Atlantic, we simply draw the corners of our lips up, showing our upper teeth. Think Julia Roberts or the gracefully aged Robert Redford. "I think Tom Cruise has a terrific American smile," Keltner, who specializes in the cultural meaning of emotions, says. In England, they draw the lips back as well as up, showing their lower teeth. The English smile can be mistaken for a suppressed grimace or a request to wipe that stupid smile off your face. Think headwaiter at a restaurant when your MasterCard seems tapped out, or Prince Charles anytime.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/11/m...90&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss&REG_SITES_SUCK
 
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Interesting! But I don't think Cruise has a terrific American smile; at least not in that picture!
 
I'm seeing too much Tom lately...
This research is interesting because I thought that there weren't supposed to be many differences in how cultures expressed emotions. But I suppose the way we smile could be as much of a cultural practice as personal space and rates of eye contact in some societies. Funny how little quirks like that pop up in human culture.
 
Not very surprising for me though! For me somehow it's like postures and gestures which have different meaning in different cultures. Thye're realated to our emotions too.
 
I hope this didnt cost any money...
 
:smile:
The research?
 
Can you Spot the Fake Smile? I just happened to run across this test the other day. I wonder if the explanation they give for how real smiles differ from fake ones holds across cultures.
 
wow that is pretty cool. I only got 8 right haha
 
I got 15/20 the first time. :-p I just took it again so I could get the explanation -- not much improvement: 16/20.

You might want to take the test before reading further.

I realized after the first couple smiles and a little reflection that looking at the eyes seemed most helpful, though I wasn't sure why.
Most people are surprisingly bad at spotting fake smiles. One possible explanation for this is that it may be easier for people to get along if they don't always know what others are really feeling.
Although fake smiles often look very similar to genuine smiles, they are actually slightly different, because they are brought about by different muscles, which are controlled by different parts of the brain.
Fake smiles can be performed at will, because the brain signals that create them come from the conscious part of the brain and prompt the zygomaticus major muscles in the cheeks to contract. These are the muscles that pull the corners of the mouth outwards.
Genuine smiles, on the other hand, are generated by the unconscious brain, so are automatic. When people feel pleasure, signals pass through the part of the brain that processes emotion. As well as making the mouth muscles move, the muscles that raise the cheeks – the orbicularis oculi and the pars orbitalis – also contract, making the eyes crease up, and the eyebrows dip slightly.
Lines around the eyes do sometimes appear in intense fake smiles, and the cheeks may bunch up, making it look as if the eyes are contracting and the smile is genuine. But there are a few key signs that distinguish these smiles from real ones. For example, when a smile is genuine, the eye cover fold - the fleshy part of the eye between the eyebrow and the eyelid - moves downwards and the end of the eyebrows dip slightly.
Scientists distinguish between genuine and fake smiles by using a coding system called the Facial Action Coding System (FACS), which was devised by Professor Paul Ekman of the University of California and Dr Wallace V. Friesen of the University of Kentucky.
 
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  • #10
If you ask me, all of them are fake!:-p
Anyway I got 12/20!:redface:
 
  • #11
17/20.

I was watching TV last night, and I noticed some guys (I think they were British, but not 100% sure) doing both "British" and "American" smiles, so I'm not sure I like this theory much.
 

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