Does age-dynamic movement accelerate facial age impression? Perception of age from facial movement: Studies of Japanese women

Motonori Kurosumi; Koji Mizukoshi; Maya Hongo; Miyuki G Kamachi

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0255570

Does age-dynamic movement accelerate facial age impression? Perception of age from facial movement: Studies of Japanese women

PLoS One. 2021 Aug 5;16(8):e0255570. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0255570. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Motonori Kurosumi^{1

2}, Koji Mizukoshi², Maya Hongo², Miyuki G Kamachi³

Affiliations

¹ Graduate School of Informatics, Kogakuin University, Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan.
² POLA Chemical Industries, Inc., Tokyo, Japan.
³ Faculty of Informatics, Kogakuin University, Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan.

Abstract

We form impressions of others by observing their constant and dynamically-shifting facial expressions during conversation and other daily life activities. However, conventional aging research has mainly considered the changing characteristics of the skin, such as wrinkles and age-spots, within very limited states of static faces. In order to elucidate the range of aging impressions that we make in daily life, it is necessary to consider the effects of facial movement. This study investigated the effects of facial movement on age impressions. An age perception test using Japanese women as face models was employed to verify the effects of the models' age-dependent facial movements on age impression in 112 participants (all women, aged 20-49 years) as observers. Further, the observers' gaze was analyzed to identify the facial areas of interests during age perception. The results showed that cheek movement affects age impressions, and that the impressions increase depending on the model's age. These findings will facilitate the development of new means of provoking a more youthful impression by approaching anti-aging from a different viewpoint of facial movement.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adult
Age Factors
Aged
Cheek / physiology*
Face / physiology*
Facial Expression*
Facial Muscles / physiology*
Female
Humans
Japan
Middle Aged
Movement*
Skin Aging / physiology*
Young Adult

Grants and funding

The funder provided support in the form of salaries for authors M. K., M. H., and K. M., but did not have any additional role in the study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. The specific roles of these authors are articulated in the ‘author contributions’ section.