Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-tf8b9 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-23T16:38:26.176Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Does Social Content Influence the Subjective Evaluation of Affective Pictures?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 May 2020

Vladimir Kosonogov Open the ORCID record for Vladimir Kosonogov [Opens in a new window] ,
José M. Martínez-Selva ,
Ginesa Torrente ,
Eduvigis Carrillo-Verdejo  and
Juan Sánchez-Navarro
Vladimir Kosonogov*
Affiliation:
National Research University Higher School of Economics (Russian Federation)
José M. Martínez-Selva
Affiliation:
Universidad de Murcia (Spain) Instituto Murciano de Investigación Biosanitaria Virgen de la Arrixaca (Spain)
Ginesa Torrente
Affiliation:
Universidad de Murcia (Spain) Instituto Murciano de Investigación Biosanitaria Virgen de la Arrixaca (Spain)
Eduvigis Carrillo-Verdejo
Affiliation:
Universidad de Murcia (Spain) Instituto Murciano de Investigación Biosanitaria Virgen de la Arrixaca (Spain)
Juan Sánchez-Navarro
Affiliation:
Universidad de Murcia (Spain) Instituto Murciano de Investigación Biosanitaria Virgen de la Arrixaca (Spain)
*
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Vladimir Kosonogov. Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience, National Research University Higher School of Economics. Moscow (Russian Federation). E-mail: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

This study explored the effect of the perceived social content of affective pictures on the subjective evaluation of affective valence and arousal. For this purpose, we established three categories of social content (pictures without people, with one person and with two or more people). A sample of 161 subjects rated 200 pictures varying in affective valence (unpleasant, neutral, and pleasant), arousal and social content. Results of two-factor analysis of variance, F(4, 157) = 71.7, p < .001, ηp2 = .31, showed that perceived social content influenced the ratings of affective valence, specially for unpleasant pictures, with the greatest social content (two or more people) leading subjects to rate unpleasant pictures with the lowest ratings (all pairwise comparisons’ p < .001). Regarding arousal, F(4, 157) = 64.0, p < .001, ηp2 = .29), the higher the social content, the higher the arousal ratings, but only for pleasant (all pairwise comparisons’ p < .007) and unpleasant (all pairwise comparisons’ p < .001) pictures. Overall, this study demonstrated an effect of the perceived social content on the subjective evaluation of affective valence and arousal of emotional stimuli.

Keywords

affective valencearousalemotionevaluationIAPS
Type
Research Article
Information
The Spanish Journal of Psychology , Volume 23 , 2020 , e6
Copyright
© Universidad Complutense de Madrid and Colegio Oficial de Psicólogos de Madrid 2020

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Adolphs, R. (2009). The social brain: Neural basis of social knowledge. Annual Review of Psychology, 60, 693–716. http://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.60.110707.163514CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bagiella, E., Sloan, R. P., & Heitjan, D. F. (2000). Mixed-effects models in psychophysiology. Psychophysiology, 37, 13–20. http://doi.org/10.1111/1469-8986.3710013CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bradley, M. M., Codispoti, M., Cuthbert, B. N., & Lang, P. J. (2001). Emotion and motivation I: Defensive and appetitive reactions in picture processing. Emotion, 1, 276–298. http://doi.org/10.1037/1528-3542.1.3.276CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Britton, J. C., Phan, K. L., Taylor, S. F., Welsh, R. C., Berridge, K. C., & Liberzon, I. (2006). Neural correlates of social and nonsocial emotions: An fMRI study. NeuroImage, 31, 397–409. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroimage.2005.11.027CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Britton, J. C., Taylor, S. F., Berridge, K. C., Mikels, J. A., & Liberzon, I. (2006). Differential subjective and psychophysiological responses to socially and nonsocially generated emotional stimuli. Emotion, 6, 150–155. http://doi.org/10.1037/1528-3542.6.1.150CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cacioppo, J. T., Norris, C. J., Decety, J., Monteleone, G., & Nusbaum, H. (2009). In the eye of the beholder: Individual differences in perceived social isolation predict regional brain activation to social stimuli. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 21(1), 83–92. http://doi.org/10.1162/jocn.2009.21007CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cacioppo, J. T., & Gardner, W. L. (1999). Emotion. Annual Review of Psychology, 50, 191–214. http://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.50.1.191CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Carretié, L., Kessel, D., Carboni, A., López-Martín, S., Albert, J., Tapia, M., Mercado, F., Capilla, A., & Hinojosa, J. A. (2013). Exogenous attention to facial versus non-facial emotional visual stimuli. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, 8, 764–773. http://doi.org/10.1093/scan/nss068CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cuthbert, B. N., Schupp, H. T., Bradley, M. M., Birbaumer, N., & Lang, P. J. (2000). Brain potentials in affective picture processing: Covariation with autonomic arousal and affective report. Biological Psychology, 52, 95–111. http://doi.org/10.1016/S0301-0511(99)00044-7CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dan-Glauser, E. S., & Scherer, K. R. (2011). The Geneva affective picture database (GAPED): A new 730-picture database focusing on valence and normative significance. Behavior Research Methods, 43(2), 468–477. http://doi.org/10.3758/s13428-011-0064-1CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dunbar, R. I. M. (1998). The social brain hypothesis. Evolutionary Anthropology, 6, 178–190. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1520-6505(1998)6:5%3C178::AID-EVAN5%3E3.0.CO;2-83.0.CO;2-8>CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Frewen, P. A., Dozois, D. J. A., Neufeld, R. W. J., Densmore, M., Stevens, T. K., & Lanius, R. A. (2011). Neuroimaging social emotional processing in women: fMRI study of script-driven imagery. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, 6(3), 375–392. http://doi.org/10.1093/scan/nsq047CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Fridlund, A. J., Sabini, J. P., Hedlund, L. E., Schaut, J. A., Shenker, J. I., & Knauer, M. J. (1990). Audience effects on solitary faces during imagery: Displaying to the people in your head. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 14(2), 113–137. http://doi.org/10.1007/BF01670438CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Geday, J., Gjedde, A., Boldsen, A.-S., & Kupers, R. (2003). Emotional valence modulates activity in the posterior fusiform gyrus and inferior medial prefrontal cortex in social perception. NeuroImage, 18, 675–684. http://doi.org/10.1016/S1053-8119(02)00038-1CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gros, D. F., Hawk, L. W. Jr., & Moscovitch, D. A. (2009). The psychophysiology of social anxiety: Emotional modulation of the startle reflex during socially-relevant and-irrelevant pictures. International Journal of Psychophysiology, 73(3), 207–211. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2009.03.001CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Harvey, P.-O., Fossati, P., & Lepage, M. (2017). Modulation of memory formation by stimulus content: Specific role of the medial prefrontal cortex in the successful encoding of social pictures. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 19, 351–362. http://doi.org/10.1162/jocn.2007.19.2.351CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Keselman, H. J. (1998). Testing treatment effects in repeated measures designs: An update for psychophysiological researchers. Psychophysiology, 35, 470–478. http://doi.org/10.1111/1469-8986.3540470CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kosonogov, V., Martínez-Selva, J. M., Carrillo-Verdejo, E., Torrente, G., Carretié, L., & Sánchez-Navarro, J. P. (2019). Effects of social and affective content on exoneous attention as revealed by event-related potentials. Cognition and Emotion, 33, 683–695. http://doi.org/10.1080/02699931.2018.1486287CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kosonogov, V., Martínez-Selva, J. M., Torrente, G., Carrillo-Verdejo, E., Arenas, A., & Sánchez-Navarro, J. P. (2019). Head motion elicited by viewing affective pictures as measured by a new LED-based technique. Multisensory Research, 32, 575-588, http://doi.org/10.1163/22134808-20191363CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kosonogov, V., Sánchez-Navarro, J. P., Martínez-Selva, J. M., Torrente, G., & Carrillo-Verdejo, E. (2015). Effect of empathy and social content on the psychophysiological responses promoted by affective pictures. Psychophysiology, 50, S104–S104.Google Scholar
Kosonogov, V., Sánchez-Navarro, J. P., Martínez-Selva, J. M., Torrente, G., & Carrillo-Verdejo, E. (2016). Social stimuli increase physiological reactivity but not defensive responses. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 57, 393–398. http://doi.org/10.1111/sjop.12311CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kret, M. E., Roelofs, K., Stekelenburg, J. J., & de Gelder, B. (2013). Emotional signals from faces, bodies and scenes influence observers’ face expressions, fixation and pupil size. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 7, Article 810. http://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2013.00810CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lang, P. J. (1969). The mechanics of desensitization and the laboratory of human fear. In Franks, C. M. (Ed.), Behavior therapy: Appraisal and status (pp. 160–191). McGraw-Hill.Google Scholar
Lang, P. J., Bradley, M. M., & Cuthbert, B. N. (1997). Motivated attention: Affect, activation, and action. In Lang, P. J., Simons, R. F., & Balaban, M. F. (Eds.), Attention and orienting: Sensory and motivational processes (pp. 97–135). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.Google Scholar
Lang, P. J., & Bradley, M. M. (2010). Emotion and the motivational brain. Biological Psychology, 84, 437–450. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsycho.2009.10.007CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lang, P. J., Bradley, M. M., & Cuthbert, B. N. (2008). International Affective Picture System (IAPS): Affective ratings of pictures and instruction manual . Technical Report A–8. University of Florida.Google Scholar
Lang, P. J., Greenwald, M. K., Bradley, M. M., & Hamm, A. O. (1993). Looking at pictures: Affective, facial, visceral, and behavioral reactions. Psychophysiology, 30, 261–273. http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-8986.1993.tb03352.xCrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Moltó, J., Montañés, S., Poy, R., Segarra, P., Pastor, M. C., Tormo, M. P., Ramírez, I., Hernández, M. A., Sánchez, M., Fernández, M. C, & Vila, J. (1999). Un método para el estudio experimental de las emociones: El International Affective Picture System (IAPS). Adaptación española [A method of experimental studying of emotions: International Affective Picture System (IAPS). A Spanish adaptation]. Revista de Psicología General y Aplicada, 52, 55–87.Google Scholar
Moltó, J., Segarra, P., López, R., Esteller, À., Fonfría, A., Pastor, M. C., & Poy, R. (2013). Adaptación española del "International Affective Picture System" (IAPS). Tercera parte [A Spanish adaptation of International Affective Picture System (IAPS). Third part]. Anales de Psicología, 29(3), 965–984. http://doi.org/10.6018/analesps.29.3.153591CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Norris, C. J., Chen, E. E., Zhu, D. C., Small, S. L., & Cacioppo, J. T. (2004). The interaction of social and emotional processes in the brain. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 16, 1818–1829. http://doi.org/10.1162/0898929042947847CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Philipp, M. C., Storrs, K. R., &Vanman, E. J. (2012). Sociality of facial expressions in immersive virtual environments: A facial EMG study. Biological Psychology, 91(1), 17–21. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsycho.2012.05.008CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Proverbio, A. M., Zani, A., & Adorni, R. (2008). Neural markers of a greater female responsiveness to social stimuli. BMC Neuroscience, 9, Article 56. http://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2202-9-56CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Saal, F. E., Downey, R. G., & Lahey, M. A. (1980). Rating the ratings: Assessing the psychometric quality of rating data. Psychological Bulletin, 88(2), 413–428. http://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.88.2.413CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sakaki, M., Niki, K., & Mather, M. (2012). Beyond arousal and valence: The importance of the biological versus social relevance of emotional stimuli. Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience, 12, 115–139. http://doi.org/10.3758/s13415-011-0062-xCrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sánchez-Navarro, J. P., Martínez-Selva, J. M., Román, F., & Torrente, G. (2006). The effect of content and physical properties of affective pictures on emotional responses. The Spanish Journal of Psychology, 9, 145–153.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sánchez-Navarro, J. P., Martínez-Selva, J. M., Torrente, G., & Román, F. (2008). Psychophysiological, behavioral, and cognitive indices of the emotional response: A factor-analytic study. The Spanish Journal of Psychology, 11, 16–25. http://doi.org/10.1017/S1138741600004078CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Scherer, K. R., & Tannenbaum, P. H. (1986). Emotional experiences in everyday life: A survey approach. Motivation and Emotion, 10, 295–314. http://doi.org/10.1007/BF00992106CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Seidel, E.-A., Habel, U., Kirschner, M., Gur, R. C., &Derntl, B. (2010). The impact of facial emotional expression on behavioral tendencies in females and males. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 36, 500–507. http://doi.org/10.1037/a0018169Google Scholar
Silvers, J. (2013). Behavioral and neural basis of emotion regulation in childhood and adolescence. (Published doctoral dissertation). Columbia University. Retrieved from https://academiccommons.columbia.edu/doi/10.7916/D8V12C2B/downloadGoogle Scholar
Vila, J., Sánchez, M., Ramírez, I., Fernández, M. C., Cobos, P., Rodríguez, S., & Moltó, J. (2001). The International Affective Picture System (IAPS): Spanish adaptation. Second part. Revista de Psicología General y Aplicada, 54, 635–657.Google Scholar
Wardle, M. C., & de Wit, H. (2012). Effects of amphetamine on reactivity to emotional stimuli. Psychopharmacology, 220, 143–153. http://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-011-2498-7CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed