The Six Universal Emotions Theory

In his seminal 1872 book The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals, Charles Darwin suggested that the facial expressions we use to convey emotions are universal, not influenced by cultural differences. 

This theory was further supported by Dr. Paul Ekman's research with an indigenous tribe in Papua New Guinea, which found consistent emotional expressions across cultures. These findings form the basis of the six universal emotions theory, a concept that has sparked debate but also deepened our understanding of human psychology. 

Here, you’ll find a guide to Ekman’s theory, as well as an exploration of the research it has inspired.

Understanding universal emotions

The theory of universal emotions posits that certain emotions are experienced and expressed in similar ways by people across all cultures around the world. This concept, rooted in the research of Charles Darwin and later expanded by psychologist Dr. Paul Ekman, identifies six core emotions: happiness, sadness, fear, disgust, anger, and surprise. 

These emotions are believed to be innate, with each having a unique facial expression that is recognizable by people from different cultural backgrounds. The theory suggests that these emotional responses have evolved as a means of communication and survival, enabling humans to quickly convey feelings and react to the environment and social interactions. 

Despite ongoing debates and research, the concept of universal emotions continues to be a foundational element in understanding human psychology, emphasizing the commonalities in how emotions are experienced and expressed across the human species.

Innate expressions: Exploring the evidence

To further prove that emotions were innate, not learned, Ekman and other notable psychologists researched the facial expressions of people who were born blind as well as newborn babies who could not express feelings in words or using language.

This research uncovered that newborns and congenitally blind people reacted to emotions similar to the rest of the world. Research on primates and their facial expressions has shown that humans and primates respond similarly, which indicates that these emotions are automatic appraisal influenced and may not be conscious expressions. These pieces of evidence may be the most compelling in the argument for universal emotions.

Some researchers believe in universal emotions but present theories of their own. For example, some believe there may be far more universal emotions and emotional expressions than the original six presented by Ekman, including amusement, coyness, boredom, confusion, shame, pride, and sympathy.

What are the 6 universal emotions?

While personal or cultural differences can influence how we express ourselves, the following emotions are thought to be universal.

1. Joy or happiness

You may know what it is to feel happy, but how do we express happiness with our faces? According to research, the basic cues of joy include raising the corners of our mouths and tightening our eyelid muscles. Our facial expression may result in a large smile affecting our eyes. We may laugh when happy, as well. 

2. Sadness

When we experience something that emotionally hurts us, we may respond by feeling sadness. Sadness is often expressed by lowering the corners of the mouth into a frown, lowering the eyelids, and raising the inner corner of the eyebrows while the outer corners remain slanted downwards. Watery eyes or tears may also accompany sadness.

3. Anger

Anger is another universal emotion. Many psychologists believe it is a secondary one, meaning it may come after or hide primary emotions like sadness or fear. An anger response may manifest itself in tightened lips, bulging eyes, and lowered eyebrows that are concentrated toward the gap between the eyebrows.

4. Surprise

Surprise as an emotion may be more related to shock than a pleasant or joyful surprise in this context. Excitement is the emotion we typically experience after life-changing news. When someone is surprised, their eyes may widen, their eyebrows may arch up, and their jaw may drop slightly, making the mouth form a circular or ovular shape. 

5. Fear

When someone is afraid, their eyes may widen, and their eyebrows can lift. Fear in the mouth area may manifest as lips stretched horizontally across the face. Fear often accompanies physical symptoms such as sweating and heart palpitations. When fear is prolonged or intense, it may be due to an anxiety disorder or other mental health condition. 

6. Disgust

Disgust is an emotion we may experience when dealing with something offensive or unpleasant. For example, if you smell something that makes you want to vomit, your reaction may be disgust. How do we typically show disgust? Disgust may form on our face when we raise our upper lip, wrinkle the bridge of our nose, raise our cheeks, and slightly arch our eyebrows.

7. Contempt (still being debated)

In addition to the six basic emotions, some research suggests that contempt to be a universal emotion giving humans seven universal emotions instead of six. However, many still disagree with this notion and instead characterize contempt as a complex emotion consisting of disgust and anger maintained consistently over a long period. 

Contempt may appear on our faces when we raise one side of our lips and furrow our brow—the rest of the face may stay relatively neutral in this expression. However, the head is often said to be tilting back when expressing contempt towards someone or something.

Other possible universal emotions

As time passed, Ekman began to recognize more emotions that seemed to pop up across the faces of all humans. Some of these many emotions included embarrassment, guilt, and pride. So why did he opt not to have them on the list of universal emotions? Often, it was because these “bonus” emotions may be considered a complex blend of existing universal emotions rather than a universal emotion themselves.

Along with some of these complex emotions identified by Ekman, he also identified micro-expressions, which he described as “facial expressions that occur within 1/25th of a second”. These expressions are involuntary reactions that we create without intent, even when someone is trying to conceal their true feelings. According to the Paul Ekman Group, these expressions also seem to be universal when it comes to human psychology.

Challenging universal emotions theory

Those who argue against the theory of universal emotions point out a few problems in Ekman’s research from Papua New Guinea. One error that they identify is that Ekman had given photographs to the study participants that they were supposed to match with emotions that had been explained to them. People against this theory say that this experiment was biased because it did not allow the participants to come to their own conclusions or express differences regarding emotions and facial expressions.

Dr. Lisa Feldman Barrett and researcher Maria Gendron set out to gather more details and knowledge about universal emotions. They asked two groups of participants from the US and remote villages in Namibia to sort photos into emotional categories. However, unlike Ekman, they did not give participants a reference image for each “universal” emotion. 

Without a previous reference, they found much more variation among the groups. US participants tended to place the images into the expected emotional category. However, the study participants in Namibia didn’t show the same recognition of the six universal emotions and their facial identifiers. The study concluded that facial expressions are not universal but could be influenced by cultural environment, upbringing, and expectations.

As a result of this study, Barrett claims that emotions are not emotions until they can be explained to us in a way that makes sense to us. She describes emotions as a complex process of responses to stimuli that varies from person to person depending on how they feel and perceive their reality. She also states that emotions technically only have meaning that we have given to them, and complex processes are happening behind the scenes of these emotions.

Counseling for emotional regulation

While traditional research seems to point to evidence of at least six universal emotions that transcend culture and upbringing, there may be much more to learn about human emotion. For example, emotions can be challenging to cope with at times and may affect mental health and influence behaviors. 

You may benefit from speaking with a professional if you struggle to identify or control your emotional processes. Many individuals opt into online therapy as an option to work through emotional well-being and to deal with life challenges, as studies show that most people feel most comfortable at home. 

Modern studies also indicate that 71% of users of online therapy have suggested that it is more effective and preferable to traditional in-person counseling. If you want to try online therapy, you might consider an online platform such as BetterHelp, which offers an extensive database of experts on various topics, including emotional management and gives you the ability to attend therapy at your convenience.