How facial expressions influence first impression revealed

A new study has shown that important faces and specific images of faces can be helpful in creating a favorable or unfavorable first impression.

The study done by the researchers in the Department of Psychology at the University of York revealed that the first impressions can influence the subsequent behavior and the impressions created through images of one faces were becoming more and more important.

Richard Vernon, a PhD student who was part of the research team, said that showing that even supposedly arbitrary features in a face could influence people's perceptions suggests that careful choice of a photo could make or break others' first impressions of someone.

Fellow PhD student, Clare Sutherland, said that they made first impressions of others so instinctively that it seemed effortless and it was enthralling that they could pin this down with scientific models.

Professor Andy Young, of the Department of Psychology at York, said: "Showing how these first impressions can be captured from very variable images of faces offers insight into how our brains achieve this seemingly remarkable perceptual feat."

The study is published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).