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When Is Dominance Related to Smiling? Assigned Dominance, Dominance Preference, Trait Dominance, and Gender as Moderators

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Abstract

We investigated gender and different types of dominance measures as potential moderators of the relation between dominance and smiling. We asked participants about their preference for either a dominant or a subordinate role (dominance preference), randomly assigned one of these roles to them (assigned dominance), and assessed trait dominance, felt dominance, and perceived dominance. Participants had two 8-min dyadic interactions in same-gender groups (33 all-women dyads, 36 all-men dyads), in which one was assigned to be the owner of an art gallery and the other was assigned to be the assistant to the owner. Interactions were videotaped, and smiling and perceived dominance were assessed on the basis of the videotapes. Both the particular dominance measure and gender moderated the relation between dominance and smiling. Results showed that for women in subordinate positions, those who wanted to be in a subordinate position smiled more than those who wanted to be in a dominant position. No such effect occurred for men and for participants in assigned dominant positions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts

    Marianne Schmid Mast

  2. Department of Psychology, Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts

    Judith A. Hall

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  1. Marianne Schmid Mast
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  2. Judith A. Hall
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Correspondence to Marianne Schmid Mast.

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Mast, M.S., Hall, J.A. When Is Dominance Related to Smiling? Assigned Dominance, Dominance Preference, Trait Dominance, and Gender as Moderators. Sex Roles 50, 387–399 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1023/B:SERS.0000018893.08121.ef

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