Facial Expression

The facial expression on communicator’s face is almost as revealing of emotion as the communicator’s eyes. A facial expression conveys meaning which is determined by circumstances and relationships. Researchers have estimated that the human face displays more than 250,000 expressions! How much expression do you think that you could make? A large portion of people display their emotions openly whereas some people tend to hide their true feelings in order to keep up a 'poker face'. The interpretation of facial expressions often differs in various cultures. For instance, in American society the grin is typically an expression of pleasure. Yet it also has additional functions. The meaning associated with a woman's smile towards a police officer will carry a different meaning from the smile she would give to a young child. A smile may display affection, convey politeness, or even camouflage genuine sentiments. For example many people in Russia consider smiling at outsiders in broad daylight to be unordinary and even suspicious while in cultures from Southeast Asia, a smile is every now and again used to cover emotional pain or awkwardness. Vietnamese people may tell the sad story about how they had to leave their country but they always end the story with a smile.

 Smile is just one of the several facial statements an individual’s use. Raising or bringing down of eyebrows, squinting, clenching the jaw and swallowing anxiously are some more types of facial expressions. Remember, you may be judged by other people on the bases of your facial expressions and also be misinterpreted but never make the mistake of judging other people especially from distinctive societies on their expressions as the degree of facial expressions one exhibits varies among people and societies.

 Here is an interesting video illustrating the different facial expressions that people use in their daily life to showcase their emotions.

References: 

VolaFriends. (2011, february 23). 75 expressions in less than a minute! VolaFriends! Retrieved from Youtube.com: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ypqQ_mJIU3M

Guffey, M.E., Rhodes, K., Rogin, P.(2011). Business Communication: Processes and product(4th brief Canadian edition).Scarborough,Canada:Nelson.