Face reading

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I don't take this test all that seriously but the thing is it got me thinking about some of the misunderstandings I've had with people.

There have been lots of times when people have gotten angry with me and it seemed to just come out of nowhere. I didn't see any signs on their face or otherwise that it was coming. I've always thought that I have a remarkable ability to anger people, and I have no idea why.

But when I get angry people seem to think I'm just being funny. They laugh at me and do not take me seriously.

Sexual interest is another one that has led to so many horrible misunderstandings I now have a phobia about it. That would be another topic in itself. I am slow to catch on to someone flirting with me because I think something else is going on. I've had some nasty surprises in that regard.

When I feel desire for someone, the way it looks on my face usually gets misinterpreted for something else. On the other hand, I don't know how many times people have gotten the idea I had a "crush" on someone that I definitely did not have those feelings for.

I am just wondering if emotions and intentions appear on my face in a way that other people take for something different, because it would appear on their own face in a different way.

In reality the information you can get from the eyes alone is ambiguous. To really read someone you need to combine with other sources of information. That's why the test is multiple choice. The point is to choose the best answer that could fit and reject those that don't seem to fit at all.

Something I could also criticize is the fact that the pictures are of actors. Therefore the correct answer is more about what emotion that particular actor is supposed to evoke to the audience at that moment. It may not be what the actor is really feeling. The emotional content also seems to be something that's enhanced by the makeup, lighting, and the age and features of the particular actor. So in the end the test is more about having common human assumptions about emotion in the eye region of faces than it is about true mind reading. After all, in real life a person might be squinting or grimacing not out of emotional distress but due to the sunlight glaring in their eyes.

I agree with the criticisms here, though I both did badly (score of 16) and have had trouble in real life. To take the test, I picked the best answer I could and left unanswered the ones where I just couldn't tell at all or couldn't pick between two possibilities. I'd have done much worse without the multiple choice options, though, in life, I'd have context to help me. I found this interesting, though. In particular, it was interesting to note where I had an opinion that matched none of the options. Hmmm. Maybe my girlfriend will be willing to try this tonight...

I instinctively researched about body language and facial expressions as an adolescent without knowing I was AS. I found it quite fascinating. It actually really helps figure out people. You can even tell if they are lying or not.

Not to be rude but, who cares?

I don't worry anymore about trying to read people. I do what I do the way I do it. If they don't like it too bad. If it bothers them they can try to be mean. Action = reaction. They're mean and I respond with resounding physical violence. They get the message. Much easier than trying to read them. Call the cops? Like I told the last one, "I have not broken any laws. I'm willing to defend this to the death. If you do not have the same level of conviction one of us will be hurt."

Don't worry about those silly test. NT's cannot communicate honestly and effectively anyway.

Lots of valid points here. Myself, I took a facial recognition test once and scored pretty good - until I figured out that I wasn't matching faces but shapes of hair, etc in the photos. When only the faces could be seen, I sucked.

This is my real life, too. I humiliated myself at the grocery store by thinking that there was one clerk who was friendly to me - when actually there turned out to be two clerks who had very similar hair and body shape, and the one who didn't know me thought I was a freak for being "too friendly". Took me months to figure that one out.

There are just too many ways a test can skew or present faulty choices or data, and then give a false positive or false negative.