Researchers at the University of Portsmouth (UK?) are researching how a smile is communicated over the telephone:
The research, which also suggested that some people have "smilier" voices than others, adds to the growing body of evidence that smiling and other expressions pack a strong informational punch and may even impact us on a subliminal level.
"When we listen to people speaking we may be picking up on all sorts of cues, even unconsciously, which help us to interpret the speaker," said lead author of the report, Amy Drahota.
Drahota, a research fellow in the School of Health Sciences and Social Work at the University of Portsmouth, recorded interviews with volunteers that required them to respond, "I do in the summer," no matter the question.
Examples of questions included, "Do you ever sunbathe?" and, "Do you go skinny dipping?"
"The interview was deliberately built up to begin serious and then become gradually more amusing and strange, and potentially slightly embarrassing," Drahota explained.
"All the while the speakers were 'admitting' what they do in the summer, even if it wasn't true, which made the interview very bizarre to the speakers which would have made them smile."
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/...80111224745.htm
