Cañadas, E. 1 , Niedenthal, P. 2 , Rodríguez-Bailón, R. 1 & Lupiáñez, J. 1
1 University of Granada
2 University Blaise Pascal
The present study attempt to investigate the role of emotions in category formation. The context specific proportion congruency effect was used as an experimental procedure to assess implicit generation of categories. Our goal was to examine whether genuinessnes of a smile might be used as a contextual cue to control attention. In particular, genuinessnes of smile faces served as a general context that was associated with a specific proportion of congruent/incongruent flanker trials (PC or PI trials). Thus, spontaneous smiles faces were associated with high (or low) PI trials, while posed smile faces were associated with low (or high) PI trials. Furthermore, we also created consistent and inconsistent category members within each of these two general contexts. More specifically, three faces of one group were associated with high (or low) PI trials (consistent faces), whereas a fourth face of the same group would be associated with low (or high) PI trials (inconsistent face), and vice versa for the other group. Participants showed more control for those faces that were associated with the group associated to high PI. Importantly, this effect appears even in the face inconsistent with its status as spontaneous smiling face, who was associated with high PC trials.