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Culture and cardiac vagal tone independently influence emotional expressiveness

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Culture and Brain

Abstract

Expressiveness (behavioral expression of emotion) is shaped by culture and by biological predispositions, such as cardiac vagal tone (CVT). However, it is unclear whether these factors interact or contribute additively, as no studies have simultaneously investigated the effects of both. Here we conducted a secondary analysis of data on emotional expressiveness to video clips depicting accidental painful injuries. Data were from a cross-cultural study of Chinese and American participants, including a bicultural group of East-Asian Americans (AA). We had previously reported that expressiveness was higher for the American than for the Chinese group (Immordino-Yang, Yang and Damasio, 2016). The current analyses included a subset of participants for whom we collected baseline electrocardiograms to establish CVT. Groups did not differ in CVT, and the effect of CVT on expressiveness did not differ across groups. Controlling for CVT, the previously reported cultural effect on expressiveness held. Controlling for group differences in expressiveness, participants with higher CVT were less expressive (calmer). These effects held controlling for participants’ reported feeling strength to the videos, suggesting that they reflect expressiveness rather than differences in strength of emotional experience. In a follow-up analysis of the bicultural AA group, higher CVT was associated with reports of stronger East-Asian ethnic identity. Our results suggest that cultural group and CVT contribute additively to emotional expressiveness, and that CVT, which is associated with emotion regulation capacity, may predispose bicultural individuals toward adopting particular cultural values. These findings should be of interest to researchers investigating cultural and CVT relations to health.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by funding from National Institute of Health [P01 NS19632] to H. Damasio and A. Damasio; by the Brain and Creativity Institute Research Fund, the University of Southern California Provost, the Rossier School of Education; X-FY was funded by the USC Neuroscience Graduate Program Fellowship, and the USC US-China Institute Summer Fieldwork Grant. We thank R. Zhou for securing access to Chinese participants; M. Lay, B. Sanders, D. Yeung, A. Goldman, E. O’Day, T. Nanda, R. Atticus, J. Flores for help with data analysis.

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  1. Brain and Creativity Institute, University of Southern California, 3620A McClintock Ave, Los Angeles, CA, 90089-2921, USA

    Xiao-Fei Yang & Mary Helen Immordino-Yang

  2. Rossier School of Education, University of Southern California, 3470 Trousdale Parkway, Los Angeles, CA, 90089, USA

    Xiao-Fei Yang & Mary Helen Immordino-Yang

  3. Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Southern California, 3641 Watt Way, HNB 120, Los Angeles, CA, 90089-2520, USA

    Mary Helen Immordino-Yang

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  1. Xiao-Fei Yang
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Yang, XF., Immordino-Yang, M.H. Culture and cardiac vagal tone independently influence emotional expressiveness. Cult. Brain 5, 36–49 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40167-017-0048-9

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