Dynamic vs. Static Facial Color Changes: Evidence for Terminal Color Dominance in Expression Recognition

Facial color is closely linked to the perception of emotion, with reddish tones often associated with anger. While previous studies have shown that static reddish facial tones enhance this perception, it remains unclear whether dynamic changes in facial color further amplify this effect. This study investigated how variations in facial color influence the perception of expression using a judgment task that involved morphed facial stimuli (fearful to angry). The participants evaluated facial expressions under two conditions: faces with dynamic color changes and faces with static colors. Experiment 1 compared red (CIELAB a*+) faces to original-colored faces, and Experiment 2 compared green (a*−) faces to original-colored faces. Neither experiment revealed significant differences between dynamic and static facial colors. However, faces with a final reddish color (higher a* value) were more likely to be perceived as angry. These findings suggest that the final facial color influences the perception of anger independent of whether the color change is dynamic or static. Our findings support the idea that the recognition of anger is modulated by the relationship between an angry expression and the color red and provide a new perspective on facial color changes in the interaction between facial expression and facial color.