Smiling.si
The psychology and science of the smile
Not all smiles are the same - the Duchenne smile, the social smile, the nervous smile all mean different things. Learn what facial expression science says about emotion, connection, and reading genuine warmth in others.
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What you get
Everything Smiling.si gives you
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Smile-type glossary
Duchenne, social, nervous - learn to tell genuine warmth from politeness.
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Research-backed answers
Grounded in Ekman's FACS and peer-reviewed emotion science.
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Everyday reading tips
Practical, general pointers for reading expressions in daily life.
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Saved study threads
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Go deeper
The Science of the Smile
Concepts from facial expression and emotion research.
Smile Types
- Duchenne Smile — Engages both the mouth and the eye muscles - linked to genuine positive emotion.
- Social Smile — A polite, voluntary smile used in greetings, engaging mouth muscles only.
- Nervous Smile — Appears in stressful moments, often asymmetric or fleeting.
- Contempt Smirk — A one-sided mouth raise linked to contempt rather than warmth.
Facial Expression Science
- FACS — The Facial Action Coding System - Ekman and Friesen's method for cataloguing facial muscle movements.
- Paul Ekman's Research — Pioneering studies on universal facial expressions across cultures.
- Universal Expressions — Six to seven expressions - joy, sadness, anger, fear, disgust, surprise - found across cultures.
Smiling & Wellbeing
- Facial Feedback Hypothesis — The theory that facial movement can subtly influence felt emotion.
- Smiling and Stress — Studies suggest genuine smiling during stress may correlate with faster recovery.
Reading Nonverbal Cues
- Eye Involvement — Genuine smiles typically engage the orbicularis oculi muscle around the eyes.
- Timing and Symmetry — Posed smiles often appear more abruptly and less symmetrically than spontaneous ones.
Pricing
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