The relationship between knowledge of American Sign Language (ASL) and the
ability to encode facial expressions of emotion was explored. participants
were 55 college students, half of whom were intermediate-level students of
ASL and half of whom had no experience with a signed language. In front of
a video camera, participants posed the affective facial expressions of happ
iness, sadness, fear, surprise, anger, and disgust. These facial expression
s were randomized onto stimulus tapes that were then shown to 60 untrained
judges who tried to identify the expressed emotions. Results indicated that
hearing subjects knowledgeable in ASL were generally more adept than were
hearing nonsigners at conveying emotions through facial expression. Results
have implications for better understanding the nature of nonverbal communi
cation in hearing and deaf individuals.