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ephemerella
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19 Mar 2009, 9:36 am

I have developed my own theories of social psychology because the stuff out there is structured more for NTs than AS. I think they skip over vast subject areas because those are instinctive for them.

My theories of social cognitive behavior include the fact that all social cognitive behavior breaks down into three phases: impression phase, update/processing phase and expression phase. Let's focus on impression and expression phases for now.

Impression phase is the brain and emotional processing we do as social stimuli come in, and expression phase is the brain and emotional processing we do as we project action and affect.

Impression phase social cognitive behavior corresponds to our sense of identity -- our understanding of the world and our place in it. How we perceive and internalize incoming sensory information.

Expression phase social cognitive behavior corresponds to our personality -- how we project our selves onto the world. It is how we externalize and express emotion and affect.

So according to the system I created (social psychology from an AS perspective), developing affective skills are part of one side of learning social skills, a part that is expressive and action-and-emotion related. Affective skills have to be practiced because there are mental dimensions as well as mood and muscular basis for having a good affect. Affective skills that people can work on include:

How to smile: this is like acting lessons, connecting to your inner child, developing the muscles in your face, practicing until you literally train yourself in how to do some smiles that express different emotions. After you learn some smiles, they will come more and more naturally as you use them and start training yourself to be comfortable projecting emotion to others around you.

How to posture: again, these are like acting lessons, learning how to have certain postures when you have certain moods, like happiness, confidence, anxiety, determination, caution. As you develop a set of postures and body language for different moods that you are in (try real acting methods), your muscles start to do them automatically. Then they will start coming naturally as you start training yourself to be comfortable projecting emotion onto others around you.

Exercise and health: good body tone, energy and action all translate to a more active sensori-motor state and more active muscle response. Exercise is really important to projecting good affect since most of projecting affect involves small muscle groups and requires energy.

Again, developing personality and presence is about the expression phase of your social mind. Developing expression phase skills are all about projecting emotion and attitude accurately and being in shape and practicing real mood-related postures and smiles (i.e. method acting and acting skills) really helps.



hester386
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19 Mar 2009, 11:40 am

ephemerella wrote:
I have developed my own theories of social psychology because the stuff out there is structured more for NTs than AS. I think they skip over vast subject areas because those are instinctive for them.

My theories of social cognitive behavior include the fact that all social cognitive behavior breaks down into three phases: impression phase, update/processing phase and expression phase. Let's focus on impression and expression phases for now.

Impression phase is the brain and emotional processing we do as social stimuli come in, and expression phase is the brain and emotional processing we do as we project action and affect.

Impression phase social cognitive behavior corresponds to our sense of identity -- our understanding of the world and our place in it. How we perceive and internalize incoming sensory information.

Expression phase social cognitive behavior corresponds to our personality -- how we project our selves onto the world. It is how we externalize and express emotion and affect.

So according to the system I created (social psychology from an AS perspective), developing affective skills are part of one side of learning social skills, a part that is expressive and action-and-emotion related. Affective skills have to be practiced because there are mental dimensions as well as mood and muscular basis for having a good affect. Affective skills that people can work on include:

How to smile: this is like acting lessons, connecting to your inner child, developing the muscles in your face, practicing until you literally train yourself in how to do some smiles that express different emotions. After you learn some smiles, they will come more and more naturally as you use them and start training yourself to be comfortable projecting emotion to others around you.

How to posture: again, these are like acting lessons, learning how to have certain postures when you have certain moods, like happiness, confidence, anxiety, determination, caution. As you develop a set of postures and body language for different moods that you are in (try real acting methods), your muscles start to do them automatically. Then they will start coming naturally as you start training yourself to be comfortable projecting emotion onto others around you.

Exercise and health: good body tone, energy and action all translate to a more active sensori-motor state and more active muscle response. Exercise is really important to projecting good affect since most of projecting affect involves small muscle groups and requires energy.

Again, developing personality and presence is about the expression phase of your social mind. Developing expression phase skills are all about projecting emotion and attitude accurately and being in shape and practicing real mood-related postures and smiles (i.e. method acting and acting skills) really helps.



Wow I didn’t realize so much went into facial expressions. Thanks for the information and advice.



Last edited by hester386 on 19 Mar 2009, 12:09 pm, edited 1 time in total.

hester386
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19 Mar 2009, 11:43 am

dedhead66 wrote:
Here try this.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0KBEOYzFFWM&feature=related[/youtube]



This actually isn't to far from how it looks when I smile. :lmao:



Hala
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19 Mar 2009, 11:57 am

Judging by the fact that people keep saying "You look sad/scared" I'm guessing that my natural expression is both sad and scared. I rarely smile and I never know when it's appropriate to smile, if someone smiles at me I often forget to smile back because I'm freaking out about why they would smile at me and whether I should return it. I have a very inexpressive face and voice.



hester386
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20 Mar 2009, 1:03 pm

Hala wrote:
Judging by the fact that people keep saying "You look sad/scared" I'm guessing that my natural expression is both sad and scared. I rarely smile and I never know when it's appropriate to smile, if someone smiles at me I often forget to smile back because I'm freaking out about why they would smile at me and whether I should return it. I have a very inexpressive face and voice.


I can relate to almost all of this. Except people usually say my face looks sad and mad instead of sad and scared. I also don't like to smile back at people because I don't like running around grinning like an idiot. And i also have a very inexpressive face and voice as well.



nothingunusual
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20 Mar 2009, 1:54 pm

Until about the age of fifteen-sixteen I was constantly asked if I was alright. People assumed I was miserable even if I was in a perfectly good mood. Strange enough, I smile alot at people who are talking to me now and I can't help it. It's down to nerves to some degree, maybe I resorted to it as a result of the comments about looking depressed, but in some ways I think I've genuinely 'grown out of it'.

I think it would be incredibly hard (not to mention exhausting) to try to change or fake your default facial expression. But who knows, maybe it might change as a matter of course one day?



Learning2Survive
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20 Mar 2009, 2:40 pm

nothingunusual wrote:
Until about the age of fifteen-sixteen I was constantly asked if I was alright. People assumed I was miserable even if I was in a perfectly good mood. Strange enough, I smile alot at people who are talking to me now and I can't help it. It's down to nerves to some degree, maybe I resorted to it as a result of the comments about looking depressed, but in some ways I think I've genuinely 'grown out of it'.

I think it would be incredibly hard (not to mention exhausting) to try to change or fake your default facial expression. But who knows, maybe it might change as a matter of course one day?


At work, I am constantly asked if I was alright. Must be my sad face..?


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dedhead66
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20 Mar 2009, 2:53 pm

Learning2Survive wrote:
At work, I am constantly asked if I was alright. Must be my sad face..?


But in your picture you're always smiling. :wink: Or is that a grimace of pain?



Sorenna
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20 Mar 2009, 3:47 pm

I have been through a lot with this.

I also get rubber face and pople asking me what the trouble is hwen there is none.

Reading me wrong.

So I just started to smile like a maniac. "HI!! ! It's good to see you."

Smile smileSmile smileSmile smileSmile smileSmile smileSmile smileSmile smileSmile smile
Smile smileSmile smileSmile smileSmile smileSmile smileSmile smileSmile smileSmile smile
Smile smileSmile smileSmile smileSmile smileSmile smileSmile smileSmile smileSmile smile
Smile smileSmile smileSmile smileSmile smileSmile smileSmile smileSmile smileSmile smile

That is me! :D



nothingunusual
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20 Mar 2009, 5:31 pm

Learning2Survive wrote:
nothingunusual wrote:
Until about the age of fifteen-sixteen I was constantly asked if I was alright. People assumed I was miserable even if I was in a perfectly good mood. Strange enough, I smile alot at people who are talking to me now and I can't help it. It's down to nerves to some degree, maybe I resorted to it as a result of the comments about looking depressed, but in some ways I think I've genuinely 'grown out of it'.

I think it would be incredibly hard (not to mention exhausting) to try to change or fake your default facial expression. But who knows, maybe it might change as a matter of course one day?


At work, I am constantly asked if I was alright. Must be my sad face..?


Mine was something like a combination between sad and pensive.

Image

:)



hester386
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20 Mar 2009, 7:07 pm

nothingunusual wrote:
Until about the age of fifteen-sixteen I was constantly asked if I was alright. People assumed I was miserable even if I was in a perfectly good mood. Strange enough, I smile alot at people who are talking to me now and I can't help it. It's down to nerves to some degree, maybe I resorted to it as a result of the comments about looking depressed, but in some ways I think I've genuinely 'grown out of it'.

I think it would be incredibly hard (not to mention exhausting) to try to change or fake your default facial expression. But who knows, maybe it might change as a matter of course one day?



Hmm, that’s interesting. If I haven’t grown out of it by age 22, then I doubt that I ever will. I agree that it will be hard to change my default expression, but if there’s a chance I would never have to hear another “Are you alright?” or “What’s wrong with you?” then it would be more than worth it to start trying.



nothingunusual
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20 Mar 2009, 7:45 pm

hester386 wrote:
nothingunusual wrote:
Until about the age of fifteen-sixteen I was constantly asked if I was alright. People assumed I was miserable even if I was in a perfectly good mood. Strange enough, I smile alot at people who are talking to me now and I can't help it. It's down to nerves to some degree, maybe I resorted to it as a result of the comments about looking depressed, but in some ways I think I've genuinely 'grown out of it'.

I think it would be incredibly hard (not to mention exhausting) to try to change or fake your default facial expression. But who knows, maybe it might change as a matter of course one day?



Hmm, that’s interesting. If I haven’t grown out of it by age 22, then I doubt that I ever will. I agree that it will be hard to change my default expression, but if there’s a chance I would never have to hear another “Are you alright?” or “What’s wrong with you?” then it would be more than worth it to start trying.


Come to think of it, I've noticed that of us have survived certain environments and situations through faking it. So I wouldn't rule out the possibility of a pretense like a faking facial expressions becoming a true reaction over a period of time - simply due to habit. What sometimes starts of as an act becomes ingrained in your behavior. I think it's really might be worth a try if anything if you can manage it.

False smiles really do hurt your cheeks though. :lol:



elderwanda
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21 Mar 2009, 1:33 am

BadMachine wrote:
OK, i'm not a big fan of of formal exercise.

So just confirm tht i've got this right - to ensure I display a cheerful face with more colour and generally appear positive, attractive, sociable and approachable from now on I should drop my pants, take a dump and extend my hand, confident that I am giving off a positive impression. :wink:


Oh come on now! You got it mostly right, but you aren't supposed to take a dump. That's not sociable. It's unsociable. Okay? Unsociable.

Oh, and er, it's not your hand that you are supposed to extend. :?

(Sorry...I just couldn't resist. :twisted: )