Macro-Expression
A standard, fully expressed facial movement lasting 0.5 to 4 seconds — long enough to be consciously controlled and socially displayed.
Macro-expressions are the everyday facial expressions people perform during conversation: a smile when greeting a colleague, a furrowed brow during concentration, surprise at unexpected news. They are typically congruent with the spoken context and can be modulated, masked, or suppressed.
Macro-expressions may be spontaneous, deliberate, or shaped by the social setting. Their appearance alone cannot distinguish genuine emotion from social signaling, so review must preserve the surrounding context.
Related terms: micro expression, facial action coding system, seven universal emotions
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