The influence of ethnicity in the recognition ability of emotional faces and voices

BACKGROUND Emotions play an essential role in human non-verbal communication and they are crucial to the understanding of human behaviour. Previous studies highlight how ethnicity bias could influence not only explicit but also implicit emotion perception. METHODS Our research aims to test neurotypical adults’ performance in recognition and evaluation of emotional stimuli, visual as faces and auditory as voices, from two different ethnic groups. Participants (N=30, Japanese, mean age: 22) have been presented with stimuli of two different emotions, Anger and Joy, at different grades of intensity (0, 40, 80 %) to better understand to what extent emotional recognition of “basic” emotions is mediated by the ethnic group (Japanese ingroup, Caucasian outgroup). Stimuli were randomly presented while EEG (64 Channel, 1000 Hz) and ECG (1000 Hz) activities were recorded and behavioural data (accuracy and response time) were gathered. RESULTS Collected data will be analyzed to obtain EEG activity by bandwave, ECG physiological variations and behavioural data. In support to our hypothesis we expect differences in the reaction that subjects express towards outgroup and ingroup stimuli: differences in the activation of cortical hemispheres, in physiological distress response, in reaction time and response accuracy. We hope to extend the study to a crosscultural comparison. TAKE HOME MESSAGE Our study will be fruitful in exploring the mechanisms affecting multiple implicit/explicit measures