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Quizzes > Science

Facial Expression Test: Spot the Emotion in Faces

Quick, free emotion recognition test with instant results to boost your people-reading skills.

Editorial: Review CompletedCreated By: Jay TitusUpdated Aug 27, 2025
Difficulty: Moderate
2-5mins
Learning OutcomesCheat Sheet
Paper art illustration of diverse faces with varying emotions on coral background for facial expression recognition quiz

This facial expression test helps you identify emotions from subtle facial cues and improve your everyday interactions. To build related skills, try our body language test for nonverbal signals, take an emotional intelligence quiz to see your broader skills, or explore the amygdala quiz to see the brain side of emotion.

What emotion does a genuine Duchenne smile typically indicate?
Surprise
Sadness
Anger
Happiness
A genuine Duchenne smile involves both the zygomatic major muscle that lifts the mouth corners and the orbicularis oculi that creates crow's feet around the eyes, which is strongly associated with true happiness. Non-Duchenne smiles often lack the eye involvement and are more likely to be polite or deceptive. Research on genuine smiles underscores their role in signaling authentic positive emotion.
Raised eyebrows, widened eyes, and a dropped jaw typically signal which emotion?
Joy
Disgust
Fear
Surprise
These core features - arched brows, wide eyes, and a dropped jaw - are characteristic of surprise according to Paul Ekman's basic emotions model. Surprise is recognized universally with this open expression. While fear also involves wide eyes, it typically brings eyebrows together rather than purely raised.
Furrowed eyebrows and tight lips often signify which emotion?
Sadness
Happiness
Surprise
Anger
When the brows are drawn together and the lips are pressed tightly, it signals anger or frustration rather than other emotions. This expression is universally linked to anger in cross-cultural studies. The corrugator supercilii muscle pulls the brows inward, creating the characteristic furrow.
Downturned mouth corners and drooping eyelids indicate which emotion?
Fear
Sadness
Surprise
Disgust
Sadness often presents with the corners of the mouth pulled down and the inner brows slightly raised, giving a drooping appearance to the eyes. These subtle changes distinguish sadness from other negative emotions. The depressor anguli oris muscle pulls down the mouth corners in sadness.
A wrinkled nose and raised upper lip denote which emotion?
Happiness
Surprise
Disgust
Anger
Disgust is characterized by the nose wrinkler (levator labii superioris) and the upper lip raise, creating a distasteful expression. This is a cross-culturally recognized pattern associated with rejection of unpleasing stimuli. There's little confusion between disgust and other basic emotions.
An eyebrow raised on one side paired with a slight lip corner raise suggests which emotion?
Surprise
Sadness
Fear
Contempt
Contempt often shows as a unilateral lip corner raise combined with a slight single-eyebrow lift. This asymmetrical expression distinguishes contempt from disgust and other negative emotions. Paul Ekman's research identifies contempt as one of the less common but distinct facial expressions.
Which combination of features most clearly signals fear?
Eyelids drooping, mouth corners down
Brows lowered, nostrils flared, lips pressed together
Mouth corners pulled up, eyes crinkled
Eyebrows raised and drawn together, eyes wide, lips stretched back
Fear involves the brows raised and drawn together (corrugator plus frontalis), eyes wide open, and lips stretched back, preparing the individual to flee or react. This differs from surprise, where brows are purely raised without drawing together. The lip stretch AU20 is key to fear expressions.
Which type of smile is typically considered a fake smile?
A smile that lacks crinkling around the eyes
A smile accompanied by tears
A smile that shows teeth
A wide, open-mouthed smile
Fake or non-Duchenne smiles usually involve only the mouth muscles without the orbicularis oculi engagement around the eyes. True smiles cause crow's feet at the eye corners, which are difficult to fake. Observers use eye crinkling as a reliability cue.
Which of the following describes a microexpression?
A prolonged display of emotion
An involuntary facial expression lasting less than half a second
A full-face gesture lasting several seconds
A deliberate facial movement used to hide emotion
Microexpressions are involuntary facial expressions that flash for less than 0.5 seconds, revealing true feelings. They occur too briefly to be fully controlled by the subject. They are key in deception detection and emotional reading.
Which facial muscle is responsible for the "crow's feet" around the eyes during a genuine smile?
Orbicularis oculi
Zygomatic major
Corrugator supercilii
Frontalis
The orbicularis oculi contracts to create the characteristic wrinkle around the eyes in a Duchenne smile. The zygomatic major lifts the mouth corners, but eye crinkling is solely due to orbicularis oculi. This muscle activity is involuntary in genuine smiles.
How long does a typical microexpression last?
Over 5 seconds
Less than 0.5 seconds
1 to 2 seconds
3 to 5 seconds
Microexpressions flash on the face for less than half a second, often between 1/25th and 1/5th of a second. Their brevity makes them difficult to observe without training or high-speed video. They reveal suppressed or concealed emotions.
In the Facial Action Coding System (FACS), which action unit corresponds to the nose wrinkling seen in disgust?
AU6
AU9
AU12
AU4
AU9 describes the levator labii superioris muscle that wrinkles the nose upper region, a hallmark of disgust. AU12 is lip corner puller, AU4 brow lowerer, and AU6 cheek raiser. FACS coding allows precise identification of discrete muscle movements.
Which emotion is most difficult to fake with authentic muscle activation?
Anger
Sadness
Disgust
Happiness
Genuine happiness requires activation of both the zygomatic major and orbicularis oculi (Duchenne smile), making it hard to mimic authentically. Other emotions can rely on single action units. The involuntary eye engagement is the telltale sign.
What distinguishing feature separates fear from surprise in facial expressions?
Tensing of the lower eyelid
Raised inner eyebrows
Lip corner pull
A dropped jaw
Both fear and surprise involve raised eyebrows, but fear also adds lower eyelid tension (AU5) and lip stretch. Surprise features an open jaw without the tension in the lower lids. This nuance helps distinguish the two emotions.
Which cultural group is most known for suppressing negative facial expressions in public according to display rule research?
French
Japanese
American
Brazilian
Studies on cultural display rules indicate that Japanese individuals often mask negative emotions to maintain social harmony. North Americans tend to display emotions more openly, while Japanese etiquette emphasizes restraint. Display rules vary greatly across societies.
What hemifacial asymmetry in a smile usually indicates genuine emotion?
One side of the mouth lifts more than the other
Teeth are fully exposed
Both sides lift equally
Only the eyes crinkle
Genuine smiles can be slightly asymmetrical, with one side of the mouth lifting more. This is due to uneven muscle activation in spontaneous expressions. Forced smiles often appear more symmetrical yet lack eye involvement.
Which FACS action unit combination is most characteristic of a disgust expression?
AU6 + AU12
AU9 + AU10
AU1 + AU2
AU4 + AU7
Disgust is coded by AU9 (nose wrinkler) and AU10 (upper lip raiser) in FACS. These combined movements create the distinctive disgust look. Other combinations correspond to smiling or anger expressions.
What feature primarily distinguishes contempt from disgust?
Eye widening
Raised inner eyebrows
Nose wrinkling
Unilateral lip corner raise
Contempt features a one-sided lip corner raise (often AU12 unilaterally), whereas disgust shows bilateral nose wrinkling and lip raising. This asymmetry is the key diagnostic cue. Researchers classify contempt separately from basic disgust.
Which combination of FACS action units defines a genuine fear expression?
AU9 + AU10
AU6 + AU12
AU4 + AU7 + AU15
AU1 + AU2 + AU4 + AU5 + AU20
Fear is coded in FACS by AU1 (inner brow raiser), AU2 (outer brow raiser), AU4 (brow lowerer), AU5 (upper lid raiser), and AU20 (lip stretcher). This combination readies the individual for action. Other AU sets correspond to different emotions.
Which factor most often leads to misinterpretation of facial cues across different cultures?
Age of the subject
Ambient lighting
Display rules
Facial symmetry
Cultural display rules dictate which emotions can be publicly shown, causing observers from other cultures to misread expressions. Symmetry and lighting can affect perception but to a lesser extent. Understanding display rules is crucial for accurate cross-cultural reading.
Which technology is most effective for detecting microexpressions in real time?
EEG headsets
Standard webcams
High-speed video cameras
Infrared sensors
High-speed video cameras capture subtle facial movements at high frame rates, essential for detecting microexpressions under 0.5 seconds. Standard webcams lack adequate temporal resolution. Infrared and EEG measure different signals, not facial micro-movements.
What does the 'face-in-the-crowd' effect describe?
Faster detection of angry faces among happy faces
Difficulty spotting sad faces among neutral ones
Slower recognition of familiar faces in crowds
Inability to see microexpressions in groups
The 'face-in-the-crowd' effect shows people detect threatening or angry faces more quickly in a group of non-threatening faces. This evolutionary adaptation aids survival by spotting potential danger. It is a well-documented attentional bias.
Which common error occurs when interpreting fear expressions?
Assuming it shows sadness
Confusing fear with surprise
Mistaking it for disgust
Interpreting it as happiness
Fear and surprise both feature raised brows and wide eyes, but fear adds tension in the lower eyelid and lip stretch. Without training, observers often mislabel fear as surprise. Recognizing the subtle lid tension is key.
In FACS coding, which action unit combination indicates a genuine smiling expression?
AU6 + AU12
AU4 + AU7
AU1 + AU2
AU9 + AU10
A genuine or Duchenne smile is coded by AU6 (cheek raiser) and AU12 (lip corner puller). These combined actions produce both mouth and eye changes. Other AU combos map to different emotions.
Which gender tends to be more accurate at reading facial expressions, according to research?
No difference
Women
Men
Children
Multiple studies show women generally outperform men in accuracy and sensitivity when interpreting subtle facial expressions. This may be due to socialization or biological factors. The advantage appears across various ages.
Which brain region is primarily associated with decoding emotional facial expressions?
Occipital lobe
Amygdala
Motor cortex
Cerebellum
The amygdala plays a key role in processing and interpreting emotional facial cues, particularly for fear and anger. Damage to this area impairs emotion recognition. Other regions handle vision and motor response, but amygdala is central for emotion.
A fleeting unilateral lip corner raise lasting about 0.2 seconds most likely indicates which concealed emotion?
Happiness
Contempt
Fear
Disgust
A quick, one-sided lip corner raise (AU12 unilateral) shorter than half a second is a classic microexpression of contempt. It reveals suppressed disdain. Its brevity and asymmetry differentiate it from full smiles.
Which display rule involves showing one emotion while feeling another, such as smiling upon receiving bad news?
Intensification
Neutralization
Masking
Deintensification
Masking occurs when a person displays an emotion that is different from what they truly feel, like smiling to conceal disappointment. Intensification and deintensification relate to exaggerating or reducing genuine displays. Neutralization removes all signs of emotion.
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Study Outcomes

  1. Identify Key Facial Expressions -

    Complete the facial expression test to accurately recognize basic emotions such as happiness, anger, surprise, and sadness from visual cues.

  2. Analyze Microexpressions -

    Learn to spot fleeting, involuntary microexpressions during the facial cues test and understand what they reveal about genuine feelings.

  3. Differentiate Subtle Emotional States -

    Develop the ability to distinguish between closely related emotions - like frustration versus anger - through targeted questions in the facial expressions quiz.

  4. Enhance Observational Skills -

    Apply systematic observation techniques to notice minute changes in facial cues, sharpening your overall attention to detail.

  5. Boost Recognition Accuracy -

    Use instant feedback from each quiz question to measure and improve your performance in recognizing emotions over time.

  6. Apply Emotion Decoding Techniques -

    Integrate practical strategies from the facial emotion recognition test into real-world interactions to better interpret others' feelings.

Cheat Sheet

  1. Universal Facial Expressions -

    Paul Ekman's research identifies six core emotions - happiness, sadness, anger, fear, surprise, and disgust - that consistently appear across cultures. When you take a facial expression test or facial expressions quiz, look for these universal signals in eyebrows, eyes, and mouth to boost your accuracy. Remember the "6 US" mnemonic (Universal Six) to recall them quickly on your next facial emotion recognition test!

  2. Facial Action Coding System (FACS) -

    Developed by Ekman and Friesen, FACS breaks facial movements into Action Units (AUs) like AU6 (cheek raiser) and AU12 (lip corner puller) for smiles. In a facial cues test, spotting AU6 alongside AU12 helps you distinguish genuine (Duchenne) smiles from polite ones. Use the "6+12 = True Smile" formula as a quick recall trick during your facial emotion recognition test.

  3. Microexpression Mastery -

    Microexpressions flash as fast as 1/25th of a second and often signal concealed feelings (Ekman & Friesen, 1969). Practice with timed facial expressions quiz drills to sharpen speed, using the "FLASH" mnemonic (Fast, Lasts <0.5s, Affective leak, Subtle, Hidden). Regular flash drills will train you for real-world facial expression tests!

  4. Context and Body Language Integration -

    Research shows accuracy in a facial cues test jumps when you include situational context and body posture (Ambady & Rosenthal, 1992). Use the "ABC" method - Appearance, Behavior, Context - to cross-reference facial signals with gestures and setting. Combining these layers gives you a 360° view during any facial emotion recognition test.

  5. Cultural Display Rules -

    Cultures govern how and when emotions are shown, influencing your performance on a facial expressions quiz (Markus & Kitayama, 1991). Remember DICE - Display rules, Intensity, Context, Etiquette - to account for cultural variations in expression intensity and timing. This awareness ensures a culturally sensitive approach to any facial expression test.

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