Name
Introductory Psychology
Fall Term, 2020
Professor
I chose the topic because I wanted to understand thin slices of expressive behaviors on interpersonal perceptions. I chose the article to understand if accurate predictions can be made from observing expressive behaviors quickly. The topic relates to my personal experiences considering my behaviors and emotions influence my daily decisions and judgments. What I understood before about the topic is that expressive behaviors are influencing our judgment about others. Also, one can observe someone’s behaviors within a short time and conclude their attitudes and emotions. I find the topic interesting because it is part of my study. Besides, it provides me knowledge on how thin slices of our expressive behaviors can influence our attitudes or judgments towards others.
The introductory part of my article asserts that impressions are made from moving, speaking, and using gestures. It also asserts that thin slices of expressive behaviors affect our daily judgments significantly. Theoretical or practical issues that prompted the research is to establish whether brief observations of expressive behaviors can be accurate when making judgments about others. Also, to understand the behavioral channels that can make thin slices of expressive behaviors bring accurate predictions. There are several empirical research that had already been done on the topic. They concluded that brief observations of expressive behavior could predict multiple clinical and social psychological results above expectations. The study described in the article hypothesizes that the accuracy of predictions from thin slices of expressive behaviors is not significantly different from different channels.
The study used four methods of literature research to locate relevant studies. The first method was a computer search on Psychological Abstracts having terms such as deception, accuracy, and non-verbal behavior. The second method involved a manual search for articles, and the third method involved a search of publications. Forth method involved the use of preprints and unpublished manuscripts relevant to the study. Additionally, the study used a coding procedure to code the variables of the study. The study measured the effect size for accuracy in predictions of thin slices of expressive behaviors by analyzing the results in the previous publications from the year 1960 to 1990. It also measured the accuracy of judgment of different channels using the results of the previously published studies. Suppose the study was an experiment; the independent variable could be the length of observation of expressive behaviors. The dependent variable could be the accuracy of predictions on interpersonal judgments.
The article’s authors found that thin slices of expressive behaviors provide vital information and allow substantially accurate predictions. Also, they found that “the effect size of .39 for the overall accuracy of prediction form observations of less than 5 min is higher than most of the effect sizes found in social and personality psychology” (pg. 267). They also found that the thinness of the slice seemingly does not affect the prediction accuracy. They found that the behavioral channel does not relate to the prediction accuracy; hence the study supported their hypothesis.
The study’s main conclusions are that the overall effect size for the accurate predictions is .39, and thin slices of behavior predict variables with affectivity and observability accurately. At the end of the article, the main points discussed are the importance of the careful selection of traits and behaviors to be judged and recommendations to achieve them. The study is exceptional, and I am satisfied with their results and conclusions. The findings mean a lot to me since thin slices of expressive behaviors can accurately predict my interpersonal perceptions.
Reference
Ambady, N., & Rosenthal, R. (1992). Thin slices of expressive behavior as predictors of interpersonal consequences: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 111(2), 256.