Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Sequential Process of Emotional Information from Facial Expressions: Simple Event-Related Potential (ERP) for the Study of Brain Activities

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Advances in Medical Diagnostic Technology

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Bioengineering ((LNBE))

  • 1190 Accesses

Abstract

Human is socially living creature that needs to communicate with others. In direct communication, there are two ways in conveying the information: through speaking words or verbally and through facial expression, body gesture or non-verbally. The non-verbal communication is taken almost 70 % of humans’ communication. Therefore, to understand how this non-verbal information is processed by the brain is quite important. In this chapter, we would like to elucidate the process of the brain in understanding the facial expression by analyzing the brain signals that correspond to emotional content of facial expression. As known, the emotion can be differentiated into the type and the level of emotion. For example, though we know that smiley face and joyful face belong to the same type of happiness, we know that the level of happiness is higher in the joyful face. Therefore, how does the brain process this kind of type and level of emotional information is the basic question that we would like to answer in this chapter. In this chapter, we explain the way we collect the data, the step-by-step process of reducing the noise in the brain signals, the way of inter-correlating the behavioral data and brain signals, how we used those data to find the location of activated brain area for processing the specific content of emotion, and finally, how we exactly find that the process of understanding the emotional information from facial expression is a sequential process; understanding the type of emotion, followed by the level of that specific emotion. This emotional process is different from that of the process of understanding the physical content of the face, like identity and gender.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Adolphs R (2002) Neural systems for recognizing emotion. Curr Opin Neurobiol 12:169–177

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Adolphs R, Tranel D (2003) Amygdala damage impairs emotion recognition from scenes only when they contain facial expressions. Neuropsychologia 41:1281–1289

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Balconi M, Pozzoli U (2003) Face-selective processing and the effect of pleasant and unpleasant emotional expression on ERP correlates. Int J Psychophysiol 49:67–74

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Benowitz LI, Bear DM et al (1983) Hemispheric specialization in nonverbal communication. Cortex 19:5–11

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bobes MA, Martin M, Olivares E, Valdes-Sosa M (2000) Different scalp topography of brain potentials related to expression and identity matching of faces. Brain Res Cogn Brain Res 9:249–260

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Borod JC, Andelman F et al (1985) Channels of emotional expression in patients with unilateral brain damage. Arch Neurol 42:345–348

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bowers D, Bauer RM et al (1985) Processing of faces by patients with unilateral hemisphere lesions: I. Dissociation between judgments of facial affect and facial identity. Brain Cogn 4:258–272

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bruce V, Young A (1986) Understanding face recognition. Br J Psychol 77:305–327

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bruce V, Young AW (1998) A theoretical perspective for understanding face recognition. In: Young AW (ed) Face and mind. Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp 96–131

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Calder AJ, Keane J et al (2000) Facial expression recognition by people with mobius syndrome. Cogn Neuropsychol 17:73–87

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carretié L, Iglesias J (1995) An ERP study on the specificity of facial expression processing. Int J Psychophysiol 19:183–192

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Darwin C (1872) The expression of the emotions in man and animals. Digireads.com Publishing, Stilwell

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Delorme A, Makeig S (2004) EEGLAB: an open source toolbox for analysis of single-trial EEG dynamics including independent component analysis. J Neurosci Methods 134:9–21

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eger E, Jedynak A, Iwaki T, Skrandies W (2003) Rapid extraction of emotional expression: evidence from evoked potential fields during brief presentation of face stimuli. Neuropsychologia 41:808–817

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ekman P (2003) Emotions revealed: recognizing faces and feelings to improve communication and emotional life. Times Books, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Ekman P, Friesen WV (1976) Measuring facial movement. Environ Psychol Nonverbal Behav 1(1):56–75

    Google Scholar 

  • Ellis HD, Young AW (1998) Faces in their social and biological context. In: Young AW (ed) Face and mind. Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp 67–96

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Field TM, Woodson R et al (1982) Discrimination and imitation of facial expressions by neuronates. Science 218:179–181

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Finger S (1994) Origins of neuroscience: a history of explorations into brain function. Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp 41–42

    Google Scholar 

  • Fredikson M, Wik G et al (1995) Functional neuroanatomy of visually elicited simple phobic fear: additional data and theoretical analysis. Psychophysiology 32(1):43–48

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fuchs M, Kastner Jn, Wagner M, Hawes S, Ebersole JS (2002) A standardized boundary element method volume conductor model. Clin Neurophysiol 113:702–712

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Haxby JV, Hoffman EA, Gobbini MI (2000) The distributed human neural system for face perception. Trends Cogn Sci 4:223–233

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heberlein AS, Adolphs R et al (2003) Effects of damage to right-hemisphere brain structures on spontaneous emotional and social judgments. Polit Psychol 24(4):705–726

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heller W, Nitschke JB et al (1998) Lateralization in emotion and emotional disorders. Curr Dir Psychol Sci 7(1):26–32

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jung TP, Makeig S, Humphries C, Lee TW, McKeown MJ, Iragui V, Sejnowski TJ (2000a) Removing electroencephalographic artifacts by blind source separation. Psychophysiology 37:163–178

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jung T-P, Makeig S, Westerfield M, Townsend J, Courchesne E, Sejnowski TJ (2000b) Removal of eye activity artifacts from visual event-related potentials in normal and clinical subjects. Clin Neurophysiol 111:1745–1758

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Junghofer M, Bradley MM et al (2001) Fleeting images: a new look at early emotion discrimination. Psychophysiology 38:175–178

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kanwisher N, McDermott J, Chun MM (1997) The fusiform face area: a module in human extrastriate cortex specialized for face perception. J Neurosci 17:4302–4311

    Google Scholar 

  • Klucharev V, Sams M (2004) Interaction of gaze direction and facial expressions processing: ERP study. NeuroReport 15:621–625

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lancaster JL, Woldorff MG, Parsons LM, Liotti M, Freitas CS, Rainey L, Kochunov PV, Nickerson D, Mikiten SA, Fox PT (2000) Automated Talairach atlas labels for functional brain mapping. Hum Brain Mapp 10:120–131

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lane RD, Chua PML et al (1998) Common effects of emotional valence, arousal and attention on neural activation during visual processing of pictures. Neuropsychologia 37:989–997

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lehmann D, Skrandies W (1984) Spatial analysis of evoked potentials in man—a review. Prog Neurobiol 23:227–250

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mazziotta J, Toga A, Evans A, Fox P, Lancaster J, Zilles K, Woods R, Paus T, Simpson G, Pike B, Holmes C, Collins L, Thompson P, MacDonald D, Iacoboni M, Schormann T, Amunts K, Palomero-Gallagher N, Geyer S, Parsons L, Narr K, Kabani N, Le Goualher G, Boomsma D, Cannon T, Kawashima R, Mazoyer B (2001) A probabilistic atlas and reference system for the human brain: international consortium for brain mapping (ICBM). Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 356:1293–1322

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McCarthy G, Puce A, Belger A, Allison T (1999) Electrophysiological studies of human face perception. II: response properties of face-specific potentials generated in occipitotemporal cortex. Cereb Cortex 9:431–444

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Michel CM, Henggeler B, Lehmann D (1992) 42-channel potential map series to visual contrast and stereo stimuli: perceptual and cognitive event-related segments. Int J Psychophysiol 12:133–145

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Morris JS, Frith CD, Perrett DI, Rowland D, Young AW, Calder AJ, Dolan RJ (1996) A differential neural response in the human amygdala to fearful and happy facial expressions. Nature 383:812–815

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nakamura K, Kawashima R, Sato N, Nakamura A, Sugiura M, Kato T, Hatano K, Ito K, Fukuda H, Schormann T, Zilles K (2000) Functional delineation of the human occipito-temporal areas related to face and scene processing. A PET study. Brain 123:1903–1912

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Natale M, Gur RE et al (1983) Hemispheric asymmetries in processing emotional expressions. Neuropsychologia 21:555–565

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • O’Leary JL (1970) Hans Berger on the electroencephalogram of man. The fourteen original reports on the human electroencephalogram. Science 168:562–563

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pascual-Marqui RD (2002) Standardized low-resolution brain electromagnetic tomography (sLORETA): technical details. Methods Find Exp Clin Pharmacol 24(Suppl D):5–12

    Google Scholar 

  • Pascual-Marqui RD, Michel CM, Lehmann D (1995) Segmentation of brain electrical activity into microstates: model estimation and validation. IEEE Trans Biomed Eng 42:658–665

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Philipps ML, Bullmore ET et al (1998) Investigation of facial recognition memory and happy and sad facial expression perception: an fMRI study. Psychiatry Res: Neuroimaging 83:127–138

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Phillips ML, Young AW, Senior C, Brammer M, Andrew C, Calder AJ, Bullmore ET, Perrett DI, Rowland D, Williams SC, Gray JA, David AS (1997) A specific neural substrate for perceiving facial expressions of disgust. Nature 389:495–498

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pizzagalli D, Koenig T et al (1999a) Affective attitudes to face images associated with intracerebral EEG source location before face viewing. Cogn Brain Res 7:371–377

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pizzagalli D, Regard M, Lehmann D (1999b) Rapid emotional face processing in the human right and left brain hemispheres: an ERP study. NeuroReport 10:2691–2698

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Reuter-Lorenz P, Davidson RJ (1981) Differential contributions of the two cerebral hemispheres to the perception of happy and sad faces. Neuropsychologia 19:609–613

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Robinson RG, Downhill JE (1995) Lateralization of psychopatology in response to focal brain injury. In: Davidson RJ, Hugdahl K (eds) Brain asymmetry. MIT Press, Cambridge, pp 693–711

    Google Scholar 

  • Sato W, Kochiyama T et al (2001) Emotional Expression boosts early visual processing of the face: ERP recording and its decomposition by independent component analysis. NeuroReport 12:709–714

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schwartz GE, Davidson RJ et al (1975) Right hemisphere lateralization for emotion in the human brain: interactions with cognition. Science 190(4211):286–288

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schweinberger SR, Pickering EC, Jentzsch I, Burton AM, Kaufmann JM (2002) Event-related brain potential evidence for a response of inferior temporal cortex to familiar face repetitions. Brain Res Cogn Brain Res 14:398–409

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Talairach J, Tournoux P (1988) Co-planar stereotaxic atlas of the human brain: 3-dimensional proportional system—an approach to cerebral imaging. Thieme Medical Publishers, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Utama NP, Takemoto A, Koike Y, Nakamura K (2009) Phased processing of facial emotion: an ERP study. Neurosci Res 64:30–40

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Biosciences and Medical Engineering, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Level 3, V01, Block A, Satellite Building, Skudai-Johor, Malaysia

    Nugraha Priya Utama & Yin Mon Myint

  2. Biomedical Engineering Department, University Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

    Khin Wee Lai

  3. Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Level 3, V01, Block A, Satellite Building, Skudai-Johor, Malaysia

    Maheza Irna Mohamad Salim

  4. MIMOS Berhad, Technology Park Malaysia, 57000, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

    Yan Chai Hum

Authors
  1. Nugraha Priya Utama
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Khin Wee Lai
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Maheza Irna Mohamad Salim
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Yan Chai Hum
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Yin Mon Myint
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Nugraha Priya Utama .

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2014 Springer Science+Business Media Singapore

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Utama, N.P., Lai, K.W., Mohamad Salim, M.I., Hum, Y.C., Myint, Y.M. (2014). Sequential Process of Emotional Information from Facial Expressions: Simple Event-Related Potential (ERP) for the Study of Brain Activities. In: Advances in Medical Diagnostic Technology. Lecture Notes in Bioengineering. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-4585-72-9_7

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-4585-72-9_7

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore

  • Print ISBN: 978-981-4585-71-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-981-4585-72-9

  • eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation