Evolutionary echoes of emotion: Humans mimic other primate expressions

TL;DR

Humans unconsciously mimic emotional expressions of non-human primates, showing a shared emotional connection across species.

Contribution

Demonstrates that humans mimic and recognize emotional expressions of non-human primates, suggesting cross-species empathy.

Findings

Participants mimicked both positive and negative emotional expressions of primates.

Humans correctly identified primate expressions as positive or negative.

Mimicry and emotional recognition suggest a deep-rooted, cross-species emotional connection.

Abstract

Humans readily mimic the emotional behavior of conspecifics -- a behavior linked to empathy. Yet, whether humans unconsciously mimic the emotional expressions of non-human primates remains an open question. Human observers watched short videos with positive (play-face), negative (open-mouth threat display) or neutral expressions by monkeys and apes (while their own facial expressions were filmed and automatically coded), rated the expressions for emotional content and indicated their degree of liking of and closeness to the primates. Participants mimicked both positive and negative expressions and were able to correctly identify the expressions as positive or negative. These findings shed new light on the deep-rooted, cross-species nature of emotional connection, suggesting that humans are able to empathize and mirror the emotions of other species.

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