Fear and Loathing

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If you want someone’s attention fast, look afraid. Vanderbilt researchers confirmed that the brain registers fearful faces more quickly than those showing other emotions. Randolph Blake, Centennial Professor of Psychology; Eunice Yang, doctoral student; and David Zald, associate professor of psychology; co-authored the study, which appeared in the November 2007 issue of Emotion. 

The researchers will next explore how this information influences our behavior. “Since these expressions are being processed without our awareness, do they affect our behavior and our decision making? If so, how?” Yang says.