The spontaneous expression of pride and shame: Evidence for biologically innate nonverbal displays

Abstract

The present research examined whether the recognizable nonverbal expressions associated with pride and shame may be biologically innate behavioral responses to success and failure. Specifically, we tested whether sighted, blind, and congenitally blind individuals across cultures spontaneously display pride and shame behaviors in response to the same success and failure situations—victory and defeat at the Olympic or Paralympic Games. Results showed that sighted, blind, and congenitally blind individuals from >30 nations displayed the behaviors associated with the prototypical pride expression in response to success. Sighted, blind, and congenitally blind individuals from most cultures also displayed behaviors associated with shame in response to failure. However, culture moderated the shame response among sighted athletes: it was less pronounced among individuals from highly individualistic, self-expression-valuing cultures, primarily in North America and West Eurasia. Given that congenitally blind individuals across cultures showed the shame response to failure, findings overall are consistent with the suggestion that the behavioral expressions associated with both shame and pride are likely to be innate, but the shame display may be intentionally inhibited by some sighted individuals in accordance with cultural norms.

Development of a FACS-verified set of basic and self-conscious emotion expressions.

“…The recognizable shame expression portrays a downward head tilt and downward eye gaze, but we asked three of the four expressers 1 to additionally pose a second version that included slumped posture, based on theoretical and empirical associations between shame (or failure) and slumped posture (e.g., Darwin, 1872;Lewis, Alessandri, & Sullivan, 1992;Tracy & Matsumoto, 2008). No previous studies have tested whether slumped posture facilitates recognition of shame.…”

Cross-cultural regularities in the cognitive architecture of pride

“…The pride display appears to generate common knowledge of enhanced value (52), is produced even by congenitally blind individuals (38), and is recognizable by young children (53) and by adults within and across cultures (45,54). Cultural differences in pride exist (41,(55)(56)(57).…”

“…Pride-driven choices and pride displays occur in every known culture (33) and appear reliably and early in development (34)(35)(36). Pride is triggered by achievements (35,37), aggressive formidability (38,39), and other factors of social value such as attractiveness and membership in a powerful coalition (40). The feeling of pride is highly pleasurable (41).…”

Seeing Social Structure: Assessing the Accuracy of Interpersonal Judgments about Social Networks

“…The inverse of sociability, social anxiety, can be reflected in behavioral cues such as speaking less, averting eye contact, the absence of gestures or smiles, as well as self-focused behaviors such as touching one's own neck, head, arm, or hand, pausing, or speaking dysfluently (Muirhead and Goldman 1979;Riggio and Friedman 1986;Harrigan et al 1987;Knapp, Hall, and Horgan 2013). Cues associated with status include tilting one's head up, speaking loudly, speaking more relative to listening, and the absence of fidgeting (Pennebaker et al 2003;Tracy and Matsumoto 2008;Gravano et al 2011).…”