Prototype Facial Response to Cute Stimuli: Expression and Recognition

Cute, kindchenschema stimuli can evoke a suite of cognitive, physiological, and behavioral tendencies thought to promote caregiving. This research investigated facial expression elements associated with this response to cuteness and assessed the recognizability of an expression combining these elements. In Studies 1 and 2, participants at a community outreach event (Study 1, n = 19) and undergraduate students (Study 2, n = 103) showed spontaneous facial displays while watching videos/photos of baby humans and animals. These were Facial Action Coding System (FACS)-coded, revealing characteristic and statistically distinctive action unit elements of facial expression responses to cuteness. In six follow-up online studies (combined N = 962), including replications with Syrian refugees ( n = 103) and Chinese samples ( n = 222), a “cuteness prototype” expression combining all elements identified across Studies 1 and 2 (i.e., oblique brows, chin raise, lip tightening, and Duchenne smile) was commonly interpreted as a response to cuteness. These findings add to a growing literature about caregiving-focused motivational states and associated emotion/affect.