Emotions Revealed: Recognizing Faces and Feelings to Improve Communication [Paperback]

btw I'm Susan Gill's son.

Dr Ekman has been getting alot of attention lately, due to the fact that he is the scientific consultant for the new show on Fox "Lie to Me". The show is even based off of his science. In fact, it's the reason I got into this type of behavioral science. So if like me you want to strengthen your ability to catch liars or see hidden emotions in the face, this book is without a doubt your best bet.

What makes this book so good is that Ekman includes pictures of every single emotion, and describes them in detail so that you should know which emotion should be felt at which time. Pictures are abundant in each chapter for each specific emotion On top of that, the book even has a test you can take to see how well you can read emotions before, and after you read the book.

Another very helpful thing is that he even gives a negation signal people can make in the face called "mouth shrugs", and the difference between a mouth shrug and sadness. This was an issue if you've seen the "Moral Waiver", because it was hard to spot in that particular episode what exactly a mouth shrug looked like. In fact, I know what a mouth shrug looks like and I STILL have a harder time seeing what they did with it, so on that note this book is very useful.

As for using it for lie detection, the extra chapter included in this edition is extremely useful. It describes the two types of errors a person can make when interpreting signals for lying, but not in so much detail that it kills you (I.E "Telling Lies"). It's almost as if it summarizes some of what "Telling Lies" says, so it's really good after you read "Telling Lies" to read that chapter if you're having any issues.

My only complaints for the book is mostly the way Ekman set up the chapters. He wrote why and when we feel the emotion BEFORE you learn to recognize it. This was a problem for me because it made me want to get to the faces and how to read them. If he had done that first, I may have been more interested in understanding WHY or WHEN certain emotions occur.

On a different note, Ekman really makes it seem that he doesn't have a lot of confidence in his lie detection system, but if you watch "Lie to Me" you can see clearly that his research can be well over 90 % accurate based on the context of the situations, and looking for changes in behavior instead of just one sign of lying only.

One last thing, if you to want to learn how to detect lies and how to read faces and body language like the people on "Lie to Me" (and like Ekman), this isn't the only book you should get. It's more of a concentration on the Face instead of the "whole picture" you'll be looking at.

This is my opinion, but you should really get Ekman's book "Telling Lies" and Alan and Barbara Pease's book "The Definitive Book of Body Language" if you want to get really serious about lie detection. Each book contains certain information that's more in depth on each subject. Like the use of Manipulators is alot more in depth in the Body language book than in any of Ekmans books (which is really needed because Ekman barely covers that topic). On top of that, reading body language can give you a better assesment of a person's behavior based on their positive and negative body language. Coupled with the "Tells" that Ekman describes, you should have a really good understanding of how the system works.

Ekman's other book, "Telling Lies" is a bit of a tougher read, but it includes valuable information on the body and lying that none of the other books have. It goes more in-depth on the two errors a Lie catcher can make, and give you a much deeper understanding on how and why people lie (make sure you buy the 2009 remake version though, it has the best information, and makes it sound more conclusive about his studies towards the end of the book).

So if you're interested in concealed emotions, buy this book immediately. If you're interested in lie detection however, buy this book, and "Telling Lies" (Paul Ekman) and "The Definitive Book of Body Language" (Allan, Barbara Pease) and to watch "Lie to Me" every week to get a better understanding of how to use his science.

*****EDITED NOTES*****

Just to let you know, I've edited my review to make it easier to read, and that I've written a review on "Telling Lies" if you'd like more information on that book.

ALSO, new to this Edit is the newest reccomended book on body language. "What Every Body Says" is my all time favorite book on body language. It's written by an ex FBI agent. While I was turned off by that fact at first, I read into it and found that the author is VERY exceptional at what he does. If you can, get that book instead of Alan and Barbara Pease's book. It's still an excellent book, but I found "What Every Body Says" to be a bit better =)

On the topic of body language and the display of emotions, Dr. Ekman is probably the most knowledgeable man alive. His writings are based on decades of real, scientific research and experimentation. In this second edition, he does a great job of explaining the root causes of emotions and then showing how emotions are displayed on the individual's face.

Dr. Ekman was among the first to identify micro-expressions, which he first identified as he studied a tape of a suicidal woman who was filmed denying her intent to commit suicide. By identifying her micro expressions, he was able to determine that, contrary to her verbal statements, she remained suicidal and in need of care and supervision.

Dr. Ekman peppers the book with many examples and anecdotes. For example, he shows how John Dean, Counselor to President Nixon, undercut his own credibility with an overly detailed memory description. The book is full of these kinds of anecdotes and examples.

Bonus: The appendix provides a visual test that the reader can use to determine their own proficiency in recognizing and reading emotions. I found the test to be interesting and instructive.

This book is a well-researched, scholarly work that will benefit any person interested in learning more about how to read and recognize the emotions of others. If you are looking for something with more entertainment value and more illustrations, you might check out The Definitive Book of Body Language by Allan and Barbara Pease.

In Emotions Revealed, Ekman discusses how a person's face can be "read" to determine what kind of emotions s/he is feeling. The author then proceeds to focus on emotions such as contempt, disgust, sadness, happiness, and anger. In each chapter he has a model who shows different expressions. He explains in great detail how to read the facial expressions as well as what they seem to mean. He also has an exercise that people can do to use facial expressions to invoke feelings. Overall, it's a fascinating read, which shows how much the face is integral to feeling emotion as well as expressing it. At times, the book is dry and can be a bit of a slog to read through, but Ekman does a fairly comprehensive job of explaining the subject. I'm already eager to see how I can apply the concepts in my everyday communication.

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