Bridget M Waller
Biographic Data
| ID | 109292 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Bridget M Waller |
| GIVEN NAMES | Bridget M |
| FAMILY NAME | Waller |
| SIGNATURE | WALLER B M |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Portsmouth |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-6303-7458 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 22 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 30 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 22 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2006 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 4 |
Development of Rhesus Macaque ( Macaca mulatta ) Facial Musculature: Implications for Macaque Social Behavior Ontogeny
Rhesus macaques ( Macaca mulatta ) have long been used as a model for the evolution of some aspects of human social behavior and they are among the most completely understood species of the macaque genus. Rhesus macaques have a despotic dominance hierarchy with a well‐documented facial display repertoire. However, we know little about the ontogenetic changes in gross facial musculature and how this might relate to corresponding facial display beh…
Facial behaviour and first impressions in computer mediated communication
Online video social interaction is now commonplace following rapid technological advances and the Covid-19 pandemic. Whether computer mediated communication (CMC) fundamentally changes nonverbal behaviour and social responses from others is unknown. Here, we conducted a repeated measures experimental study (N = 66) comparing three types of dyadic social interactions: in person, online video call (with self-view) and online video call (no self-vie…
Pseudoreplication in Primate Communication Research: 10 Years On
Pseudoreplication is the statistical error of collecting numerous datapoints from a single unit (such as an individual), which are not independent, and applying statistical methods that assume independence of data. Importantly, pseudoreplication increases the chances of Type 1 errors (i.e., false positives), bringing findings and conclusions based on pseudoreplicated analyses into question. Ten years ago, Waller et al. (2013) published a paper hi…
The face is central to primate multicomponent signals
A wealth of experimental and observational evidence suggests that faces have become increasingly important in the communication system of primates over evolutionary time and that both the static and moveable aspects of faces convey considerable information. Therefore, whenever there is a visual component to any multicomponent signal the face is potentially relevant. However, the role of the face is not always considered in primate multicomponent …
Personality Traits Predict Social Network Size in Older Adults
Humans live in unusually large groups, where relationships are thought to be maintained through complex socio-communicative abilities. The size and quality of social networks are associated with health and well-being outcomes throughout life. However, how some individuals manage to form larger social networks is not well understood. If socio-communicative traits evolved to form and maintain relationships, personality traits should be associated w…
Signal value of stress behaviour
Physiological and psychological stress are accompanied by nonverbal behaviour across a wide range of species. The function of this ‘stress behaviour’ is not well understood but is often assumed to be read by others as a cue to stress. Displaying signs of weakness is, however, difficult to understand from an evolutionary perspective and therefore further investigation into why these behaviours exist is needed. Here, we test whether displacement be…
Revisiting Darwin's comparisons between human and non-human primate facial signals
Darwin and other pioneering scholars made comparisons between human facial signals and those of non-human primates, suggesting that they share evolutionary history. We now have tools available (the Facial Action Coding System) to make these comparisons anatomically based and standardised, as well as analytical methods to facilitate comparative studies. Here we review the evidence establishing a shared anatomical basis between the facial behaviour…
Morphological variants of silent bared‐teeth displays have different social interaction outcomes in crested macaques ( Macaca nigra )
OBJECTIVES: While it has been demonstrated that even subtle variation in human facial expressions can lead to significant changes in the meaning and function of expressions, relatively few studies have examined primate facial expressions using similarly objective and rigorous analysis. Construction of primate facial expression repertoires may, therefore, be oversimplified, with expressions often arbitrarily pooled and/or split into subjective pig…
Primate Society of Great Britain Spring Meeting 2018: Cognition and communication
A comparison of facial expression properties in five hylobatid species
Little is known about facial communication of lesser apes (family Hylobatidae) and how their facial expressions (and use of) relate to social organization. We investigated facial expressions (defined as combinations of facial movements) in social interactions of mated pairs in five different hylobatid species belonging to three different genera using a recently developed objective coding system, the Facial Action Coding System for hylobatid speci…
Multicomponent and Multimodal Lipsmacking in Crested Macaques ( Macaca nigra )
Primates’ communicative signals are often dynamic and composed of multiple components, sometimes belonging to different sensory modalities. Such multicomponent signals are of crucial importance in the study of communication: the addition of extra features to a signal has the potential to modulate or change the meaning and message of the specific signal. Traditionally, however, components of compound signals are studied in isolation from each othe…
OrangFacs: A Muscle-Based Facial Movement Coding System for Orangutans (Pongo spp.)
Facilitating Play Through Communication: Significance of Teeth Exposure in the Gorilla Play Face
Primate facial expressions ( FE s) likely play an important role in primate society: through facial signals, individuals can potentially send and receive information and may benefit from coordinating their behavior accordingly. Many primates use a relaxed open mouth ( ROM ) facial display or “play face” ( PF ) during play behavior, where the mouth is open but teeth are covered. In addition to this conventional PF , however, W estern L owland gori…
GibbonFacs: A Muscle-Based Facial Movement Coding System for Hylobatids
The Evolution of Social Cognition
Twelve (not so) angry men: Managing conversational group size increases perceived contribution by decision makers
Individuals in large groups do not always contribute equally to group decision making. This may be due to constraints on conversational group size, as when a group is comprised of more than 4 people, it spontaneously fissions into smaller groups within which conversations take place. Thus, if conversations are attempted in larger groups, some individuals will not be part of the spontaneously forming discursive subgroup and, consequently, may not …
Brief communication: MaqFacs: A muscle‐based facial movement coding system for the rhesus macaque
Over 125 years ago, Charles Darwin (1872) suggested that the only way to fully understand the form and function of human facial expression was to make comparisons with other species. Nevertheless, it has been only recently that facial expressions in humans and related primate species have been compared using systematic, anatomically based techniques. Through this approach, large‐scale evolutionary and phylogenetic analyses of facial expressions, …
Not Growling but Smiling: New Interpretations of the Bared-Teeth Motif in the Pre-Columbian Caribbean
Insights into the character of social relations are rare but exciting glimpses when it comes to archaeological populations. This paper uses a multidisciplinary combination of archaeological and evolutionary biological approaches to assess the social value of the bared-teeth motif (BTM) in pre-Columbian iconography of the Greater Antilles. Bared teeth feature on discrete artifact categories within the material culture of many different groups in t…
Facial expression categorization by chimpanzees using standardized stimuli
The ability to recognize and accurately interpret facial expressions are critical social cognition skills in primates, yet very few studies have examined how primates discriminate these social signals and which features are the most salient. Four experiments examined chimpanzee facial expression processing using a set of standardized, prototypical stimuli created using the new ChimpFACS coding system. First, chimpanzees were found to accurately d…
Selection for universal facial emotion
Facial expression is heralded as a communication system common to all human populations, and thus is generally accepted as a biologically based, universal behavior. Happiness, sadness, fear, anger, surprise, and disgust are universally recognized and produced emotions, and communication of these states is deemed essential in order to navigate the social environment. It is puzzling, however, how individuals are capable of producing similar facial …
Classifying chimpanzee facial expressions using muscle action
The Chimpanzee Facial Action Coding System (ChimpFACS) is an objective, standardized observational tool for measuring facial movement in chimpanzees based on the well-known human Facial Action Coding System (FACS; P. Ekman & W. V. Friesen, 1978). This tool enables direct structural comparisons of facial expressions between humans and chimpanzees in terms of their common underlying musculature. Here the authors provide data on the first applicatio…
Intramuscular electrical stimulation of facial muscles in humans and chimpanzees: Duchenne revisited and extended
The pioneering work of Duchenne (1862/1990) was replicated in humans using intramuscular electrical stimulation and extended to another species (Pan troglodytes: chimpanzees) to facilitate comparative facial expression research. Intramuscular electrical stimulation, in contrast to the original surface stimulation, offers the opportunity to activate individual muscles as opposed to groups of muscles. In humans, stimulation resulted in appearance c…
Brief communication: MaqFacs: A muscle‐based facial movement coding system for the rhesus macaque
Over 125 years ago, Charles Darwin (1872) suggested that the only way to fully understand the form and function of human facial expression was to make comparisons with other species. Nevertheless, it has been only recently that facial expressions in humans and related primate species have been compared using systematic, anatomically based techniques. Through this approach, large‐scale evolutionary and phylogenetic analyses of facial expressions, …
Not Growling but Smiling: New Interpretations of the Bared-Teeth Motif in the Pre-Columbian Caribbean
Insights into the character of social relations are rare but exciting glimpses when it comes to archaeological populations. This paper uses a multidisciplinary combination of archaeological and evolutionary biological approaches to assess the social value of the bared-teeth motif (BTM) in pre-Columbian iconography of the Greater Antilles. Bared teeth feature on discrete artifact categories within the material culture of many different groups in t…
The face is central to primate multicomponent signals
A wealth of experimental and observational evidence suggests that faces have become increasingly important in the communication system of primates over evolutionary time and that both the static and moveable aspects of faces convey considerable information. Therefore, whenever there is a visual component to any multicomponent signal the face is potentially relevant. However, the role of the face is not always considered in primate multicomponent …
OrangFacs: A Muscle-Based Facial Movement Coding System for Orangutans (Pongo spp.)
GibbonFacs: A Muscle-Based Facial Movement Coding System for Hylobatids
Morphological variants of silent bared‐teeth displays have different social interaction outcomes in crested macaques ( Macaca nigra )
OBJECTIVES: While it has been demonstrated that even subtle variation in human facial expressions can lead to significant changes in the meaning and function of expressions, relatively few studies have examined primate facial expressions using similarly objective and rigorous analysis. Construction of primate facial expression repertoires may, therefore, be oversimplified, with expressions often arbitrarily pooled and/or split into subjective pig…
Revisiting Darwin's comparisons between human and non-human primate facial signals
Darwin and other pioneering scholars made comparisons between human facial signals and those of non-human primates, suggesting that they share evolutionary history. We now have tools available (the Facial Action Coding System) to make these comparisons anatomically based and standardised, as well as analytical methods to facilitate comparative studies. Here we review the evidence establishing a shared anatomical basis between the facial behaviour…
Twelve (not so) angry men: Managing conversational group size increases perceived contribution by decision makers
Individuals in large groups do not always contribute equally to group decision making. This may be due to constraints on conversational group size, as when a group is comprised of more than 4 people, it spontaneously fissions into smaller groups within which conversations take place. Thus, if conversations are attempted in larger groups, some individuals will not be part of the spontaneously forming discursive subgroup and, consequently, may not …
Intramuscular electrical stimulation of facial muscles in humans and chimpanzees: Duchenne revisited and extended
The pioneering work of Duchenne (1862/1990) was replicated in humans using intramuscular electrical stimulation and extended to another species (Pan troglodytes: chimpanzees) to facilitate comparative facial expression research. Intramuscular electrical stimulation, in contrast to the original surface stimulation, offers the opportunity to activate individual muscles as opposed to groups of muscles. In humans, stimulation resulted in appearance c…
Classifying chimpanzee facial expressions using muscle action
The Chimpanzee Facial Action Coding System (ChimpFACS) is an objective, standardized observational tool for measuring facial movement in chimpanzees based on the well-known human Facial Action Coding System (FACS; P. Ekman & W. V. Friesen, 1978). This tool enables direct structural comparisons of facial expressions between humans and chimpanzees in terms of their common underlying musculature. Here the authors provide data on the first applicatio…
Facial expression categorization by chimpanzees using standardized stimuli
The ability to recognize and accurately interpret facial expressions are critical social cognition skills in primates, yet very few studies have examined how primates discriminate these social signals and which features are the most salient. Four experiments examined chimpanzee facial expression processing using a set of standardized, prototypical stimuli created using the new ChimpFACS coding system. First, chimpanzees were found to accurately d…
Selection for universal facial emotion
Facial expression is heralded as a communication system common to all human populations, and thus is generally accepted as a biologically based, universal behavior. Happiness, sadness, fear, anger, surprise, and disgust are universally recognized and produced emotions, and communication of these states is deemed essential in order to navigate the social environment. It is puzzling, however, how individuals are capable of producing similar facial …
Brief communication: MaqFacs: A muscle‐based facial movement coding system for the rhesus macaque
Over 125 years ago, Charles Darwin (1872) suggested that the only way to fully understand the form and function of human facial expression was to make comparisons with other species. Nevertheless, it has been only recently that facial expressions in humans and related primate species have been compared using systematic, anatomically based techniques. Through this approach, large‐scale evolutionary and phylogenetic analyses of facial expressions, …
Not Growling but Smiling: New Interpretations of the Bared-Teeth Motif in the Pre-Columbian Caribbean
Insights into the character of social relations are rare but exciting glimpses when it comes to archaeological populations. This paper uses a multidisciplinary combination of archaeological and evolutionary biological approaches to assess the social value of the bared-teeth motif (BTM) in pre-Columbian iconography of the Greater Antilles. Bared teeth feature on discrete artifact categories within the material culture of many different groups in t…
The Evolution of Social Cognition
Twelve (not so) angry men: Managing conversational group size increases perceived contribution by decision makers
Individuals in large groups do not always contribute equally to group decision making. This may be due to constraints on conversational group size, as when a group is comprised of more than 4 people, it spontaneously fissions into smaller groups within which conversations take place. Thus, if conversations are attempted in larger groups, some individuals will not be part of the spontaneously forming discursive subgroup and, consequently, may not …
Facilitating Play Through Communication: Significance of Teeth Exposure in the Gorilla Play Face
Primate facial expressions ( FE s) likely play an important role in primate society: through facial signals, individuals can potentially send and receive information and may benefit from coordinating their behavior accordingly. Many primates use a relaxed open mouth ( ROM ) facial display or “play face” ( PF ) during play behavior, where the mouth is open but teeth are covered. In addition to this conventional PF , however, W estern L owland gori…
GibbonFacs: A Muscle-Based Facial Movement Coding System for Hylobatids
Multicomponent and Multimodal Lipsmacking in Crested Macaques ( Macaca nigra )
Primates’ communicative signals are often dynamic and composed of multiple components, sometimes belonging to different sensory modalities. Such multicomponent signals are of crucial importance in the study of communication: the addition of extra features to a signal has the potential to modulate or change the meaning and message of the specific signal. Traditionally, however, components of compound signals are studied in isolation from each othe…
OrangFacs: A Muscle-Based Facial Movement Coding System for Orangutans (Pongo spp.)
A comparison of facial expression properties in five hylobatid species
Little is known about facial communication of lesser apes (family Hylobatidae) and how their facial expressions (and use of) relate to social organization. We investigated facial expressions (defined as combinations of facial movements) in social interactions of mated pairs in five different hylobatid species belonging to three different genera using a recently developed objective coding system, the Facial Action Coding System for hylobatid speci…
Primate Society of Great Britain Spring Meeting 2018: Cognition and communication
Morphological variants of silent bared‐teeth displays have different social interaction outcomes in crested macaques ( Macaca nigra )
OBJECTIVES: While it has been demonstrated that even subtle variation in human facial expressions can lead to significant changes in the meaning and function of expressions, relatively few studies have examined primate facial expressions using similarly objective and rigorous analysis. Construction of primate facial expression repertoires may, therefore, be oversimplified, with expressions often arbitrarily pooled and/or split into subjective pig…
Signal value of stress behaviour
Physiological and psychological stress are accompanied by nonverbal behaviour across a wide range of species. The function of this ‘stress behaviour’ is not well understood but is often assumed to be read by others as a cue to stress. Displaying signs of weakness is, however, difficult to understand from an evolutionary perspective and therefore further investigation into why these behaviours exist is needed. Here, we test whether displacement be…
Revisiting Darwin's comparisons between human and non-human primate facial signals
Darwin and other pioneering scholars made comparisons between human facial signals and those of non-human primates, suggesting that they share evolutionary history. We now have tools available (the Facial Action Coding System) to make these comparisons anatomically based and standardised, as well as analytical methods to facilitate comparative studies. Here we review the evidence establishing a shared anatomical basis between the facial behaviour…
Personality Traits Predict Social Network Size in Older Adults
Humans live in unusually large groups, where relationships are thought to be maintained through complex socio-communicative abilities. The size and quality of social networks are associated with health and well-being outcomes throughout life. However, how some individuals manage to form larger social networks is not well understood. If socio-communicative traits evolved to form and maintain relationships, personality traits should be associated w…
Facial behaviour and first impressions in computer mediated communication
Online video social interaction is now commonplace following rapid technological advances and the Covid-19 pandemic. Whether computer mediated communication (CMC) fundamentally changes nonverbal behaviour and social responses from others is unknown. Here, we conducted a repeated measures experimental study (N = 66) comparing three types of dyadic social interactions: in person, online video call (with self-view) and online video call (no self-vie…
Pseudoreplication in Primate Communication Research: 10 Years On
Pseudoreplication is the statistical error of collecting numerous datapoints from a single unit (such as an individual), which are not independent, and applying statistical methods that assume independence of data. Importantly, pseudoreplication increases the chances of Type 1 errors (i.e., false positives), bringing findings and conclusions based on pseudoreplicated analyses into question. Ten years ago, Waller et al. (2013) published a paper hi…
The face is central to primate multicomponent signals
A wealth of experimental and observational evidence suggests that faces have become increasingly important in the communication system of primates over evolutionary time and that both the static and moveable aspects of faces convey considerable information. Therefore, whenever there is a visual component to any multicomponent signal the face is potentially relevant. However, the role of the face is not always considered in primate multicomponent …
Development of Rhesus Macaque ( Macaca mulatta ) Facial Musculature: Implications for Macaque Social Behavior Ontogeny
Rhesus macaques ( Macaca mulatta ) have long been used as a model for the evolution of some aspects of human social behavior and they are among the most completely understood species of the macaque genus. Rhesus macaques have a despotic dominance hierarchy with a well‐documented facial display repertoire. However, we know little about the ontogenetic changes in gross facial musculature and how this might relate to corresponding facial display beh…
Psychology (20 works) · Communication (14 works) · Facial expression (12 works) · Face Recognition and Perception (11 works) · Neuroscience (11 works) · Biology (10 works) · Cognitive psychology (10 works) · Computer Science (10 works) · Primate Behavior and Ecology (10 works) · Primate (8 works)