Abstract
The facial behavior during a marble rolling game was analyzed for two samples of children between the ages of 2 and 5 years using the Facial Action Coding System (FACS). In addition, for a subsample of children temperament ratings were available. Analysis of coding reliability showed that frequency as well as temporal location coding can be reliably performed for preschoolers. The facial movements show a frequency distribution which is highly similar in both samples. Movements of the mouth, especially the components of smiling, and some movements of the eye region, were observed frequently. Most other facial movements were infrequent events. The more often shown facial movements were stable over a period up to 18 months. In addition, sum-scores of emotion-relevant Action Units were meaningfully related to infant temperament characteristics.
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The study was funded by a grant from the Volkswagen Foundation. The authors are grateful to all persons who contributed to the research reported here. Several dedicated research assistants from the Philipps-Universität Marburg and the Ruhr-Universität Bochum helped to collect and analyze the data: Ingrid Josephs, Dagmar Marx, Brigitte Prankel, and Walburga Scheiblechner. We also thank Marnie Wilbertz and Phillip Ward for improving the English Text, Walburga Scheiblechner and Günter Keim who prepared the figures, and Karin Pfeil who typed several versions of the manuscript. Parts of the results were presented at the 3rd European Symposium on Facial Expression, Ringberg Castle/West Germany, March 1988.
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Unzner, L., Schneider, K. Facial reactions in preschoolers: A descriptive study. J Nonverbal Behav 14, 19–33 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01006577
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01006577