Abstract
When observing face-to-face interactions between two people, we can instantly infer which person is more dominant, competent, or trustworthy, from various nonverbal cues. In the present study, we investigated how facial expressions of emotion influence perceptions of dominance in a face-to-face situation. In Experiment 1, participants observed two people's facial expressions presented face-to-face and judged which person looked more dominant than the other. In Experiment 2, we asked participants to rate how dominant each face looked with a single presentation. In Experiment 3, we asked participants to rate how dominant each face looked in a face-to-face situation. The results showed that persons with a happy expression were judged to dominate in face-to-face confrontation scenes, whereas their personal traits were judged to the least dominant. The present study indicates that perception of dominance in face-to-face confrontation scenes does not involve merely a comparison between the personal traits of two persons.
