Abstract
Facial expressions are a major channel of interpersonal communication. They occupy a unique role in the understanding and regulation of interpersonal interactions because the face is often impossible to conceal and difficult to control. Moreover, facial expressions may convey underlying affect more readily than the more easily manipulated verbal expressions. This chapter reviews examples from the adult literature that have provided many of the questions and paradigms for researchers of infant and child facial expressions. It presents examples of infant and child research relevant to the developmental questions suggested by the adult literature. A series of infant and preschool studies in which it assessed relationships between production and perception of facial expressions are described. The chapter presents a developmental model that may integrate these studies and the existing literature.