Perceptions of Dominance following Glimpses of Faces and Bodies

Abstract

Abstract. Dominance is one of the most ecologically important social traits that humans express and perceive. Here, we examined perceivers' capacity to judge dominance under physical and temporal constraints. In study 1, dominant, neutral, and submissive poses of otherwise non-expressive faces and impoverished facial outlines were judged after exposure for 27 ms, 40 ms, 94 ms, or at a selfpaced rate (approximately 2000 ms). Perceivers' judgments of dominance were significantly more accurate than chance guessing for exposures of 40 ms and greater, with no significant increase in accuracy given additional viewing time. In study 2, we replaced faces with bodies and figural outlines of bodies. Perceivers' judgments were again better than chance for exposures of 40 ms and greater, but significant increases in accuracy were observed for durations of 94 ms and at a self-paced rate. Finally, in study 3, we combined studies 1 and 2 to allow comparisons across stimuli. Results showed that judgments of dominance from the faces were significantly more accurate than were those of the bodies, and judgments of full stimuli were more accurate than were those of outlines. These data extend our knowledge of the efficient and accurate perception of social cues from nonverbal behavior.

Taking the Perfect Selfie: Investigating the Impact of Perspective on the Perception of Higher Cognitive Variables

“…With respect to the perception of the associated dominance , past research revealed that raising the head improves the perception of it (e.g., Otta et al, 1994; Mignault and Chaudhuri, 2003; Chiao et al, 2008; Rule et al, 2012). Similarly, Burke and Sulikowski (2010) demonstrated a clear association between upward postures and perceived masculinity.…”

“…However, scientific reports about direct effects of dominance on the perceived attractiveness are rather inconsistent, for example, positive effects are reported by e.g., Keating (1985), but see Perrett et al (1998) for reported negative effects. With respect to viewing perspective and the perception of the associated dominance on the basis of faces, there is evidence that raising the head improves the perception of perceived dominance (e.g., Otta et al, 1994; Mignault and Chaudhuri, 2003; Chiao et al, 2008; Rule et al, 2012). Furthermore, Burke and Sulikowski (2010) revealed a strong relationship between upward postures and perceived masculinity .…”

More than a face: a unified theoretical perspective on nonverbal social cue processing in social anxiety

“…For example, pride is cross-culturally recognized and easily distinguished from other similar emotions (e.g., happiness; Tracy and Robins, 2007). Recently, Rule et al (2012) found that perceivers’ judgments of posture dominance were significantly more accurate than chance guessing for exposures as brief as 40 ms, with no significant increase in accuracy given additional viewing time.…”

Eye Gaze and Head Posture Jointly Influence Judgments of Dominance, Physical Strength, and Anger

“…Head posture might also influence judgments of dominance, but there is markedly little evidence about it. Some studies suggest that a raised head increases judgment of dominance (Chiao et al, 2008;Mignault & Chaudhuri, 2003; see also Rule, Adams, Ambady, & Freeman, 2012). For instance, Mignault and Chaudhuri (2003) have shown that a person with a raised head is perceived as more dominant compared to one with a bowed head.…”