Interpreting Foreign Smiles: Language Context and Type of Scale in the Assessment of Perceived Happiness and Sadness

Abstract

The current study focuses on how different scales with varying demands can affect our subjective assessments. We carried out 2 experiments in which we asked participants to rate how happy or sad morphed images of faces looked. The two extremes were the original happy and original sad faces with 4 morphs in between. We manipulated language of the task—namely, half of the participants carried it out in their native language, Spanish, and the other half in their foreign language, English—and type of scale. Within type of scale, we compared verbal and brightness scales. We found that, while language did not have an effect on the assessment, type of scale did. The brightness scale led to overall higher ratings, i.e., assessing all faces as somewhat happier. This provides a limitation on the foreign language effect, as well as evidence for the influence of the cognitive demands of a scale on emotionality assessments.

The necessary, albeit belated, transition to computerized cognitive assessment

“…Digital platforms are also well-known for their accessibility, and the possibility of modifying the contrast, the size or color of the text, the volume, or the response requirements of people with reduced mobility or motor difficulties represent altogether a clear-cut advantage of CCA. The adaptation of the test to the specific needs of the assessed person is straightforward in CCA, including language modification when it is necessary to serve a student, patient, or user of another language (see Frances et al, 2020 , for a discussion of the impact of this factor). Since COVID-19, ubiquity takes an important role, and the need to remotely assess people has skyrocketed ( Larner, 2021 ).…”