But that’s how exchanges went during pre-pandemic times. Now we’re smiling with a mask on, making the expression (in addition to many others that convey emotion) ineffective.

COVID masks stopped people from smiling — they’re taking lessons to relearn By Emily Lefroy Published June 5, 2023 ...

This was published 4 years ago The importance of smiling behind the mask Jo Lane July 28, 2020 — 11.00pm Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size ...

Behind a mask, this distinction is not so clear. Niedenthal predicts that as mask use stretches on, people may rely more on the context of the situation to tell them how to interpret an interaction.