Experimental work:
Thus far, our research has yielded several new findings.
In a review article (Kret et al., 2020), we provide a fresh look on the emotion literature by comparing the human and great ape literature on emotional expressions. We come to the conclusion that in contrast to the field of primatology, psychologists often make use of acted emotions. This brings ecological validity issues to the table and makes comparisons challenging. What do people really express when they experience an emotion? We do give some answers in the review, but also provide a roadmap on how to continue research.
An empirical study by Behrens et al (2019) shows that face to face contact fosters cooperation. In a follow-up, it is shown that physiological synchrony between interaction partners plays an important role herein. How this works, exactly, is still not entirely clear, but it is likely that unconscious emotional cues such as pupil size and blushing may reflect arousal states. In different small experiments we zoomed in on contagious yawning (van Berlo et al., 2020); contagious scratching (Laméris et al., 2020), pupil mimicry (Aktar et al., 2019). With virtual reality we further aim to get a deeper understanding in the role of emotional mimicry during social interactions.
Dissemination:
The work has been published in scientific journals. Further, the PI has written a popular science book about this topic (in Dutch) which will appear in the bookstores the upcoming fall. The publisher is Atlas Contact.
The research has been covered by national and international media (e.g. radio, television, newspapers). The full list can be found here:
https://www.mariskakret.com/media/(opens in new window).
A new initiative has been launched to reach the general public: a lab on wheels, supported by the communities of Leiden and The Hague. Due to Covid, we have not yet created this yet, but a website is in the air where several dissemination activities are listed:
https://www.mariskakret.com/media/(opens in new window)
