Resting bitch face

Resting bitch face (RBF) is a facial expression that unintentionally creates the impression that a person is angry, annoyed, irritated, or contemptuous, particularly when the individual is relaxed, resting, or not expressing any particular emotion.[1][2] The concept has been studied by psychologists and may have psychological implications related to facial biases, gender stereotypes, human judgement and decision-making.[3][4][5] The concept has also been studied by scientists with information technology; using a type of facial recognition system, they found that the phenomenon is real and the condition is as common in males as in females, despite use of the gendered word bitch.[6]

  1. ^ Jessica Bennett (August 1, 2015). "I'm Not Mad. That's Just My RBF". The New York Times. p. ST9. Archived from the original on September 5, 2015. Retrieved August 2, 2015. In that moment, I joined the ranks of a tribe of women who suffer from the scourge known as "resting bitch face" or, increasingly, just RBF.
  2. ^ Gibson, Caitlin (February 2, 2016). "Scientists have discovered what causes Resting Bitch Face". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on March 15, 2018. Retrieved February 10, 2016. "Something in the neutral expression of the face is relaying contempt, both to the software and to us."
  3. ^ Saedi, Goal Auzeen (August 8, 2015). "Do You Suffer From 'Bitchy Resting Face'?". Psychology Today. Retrieved December 8, 2015.
  4. ^ Todorov, Alexander; Olivola, Christopher Y.; Dotsch, Ron; Mende-Siedlecki, Peter (2015). "Social Attributions from Faces: Determinants, Consequences, Accuracy, and Functional Significance" (PDF). Annual Review of Psychology. 66: 519–45. doi:10.1146/annurev-psych-113011-143831. PMID 25196277. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 1, 2022. Retrieved December 8, 2015.
  5. ^ Natasha Noman (February 3, 2016). "Science Says Resting Bitch Face Is Real — And You're Probably Judging People for It". Mic. Archived from the original on December 5, 2020. Retrieved May 9, 2016. In short, RBF is when a person's expression unintentionally implies they are "simultaneously bored, mad and skeptical," Jessica Bennett wrote of her own face in a New York Times op-ed on the subject.
  6. ^ Mazza, Ed. "Science Finds Resting Bitch Face Is Real -- And Men Can Have It, Too Archived 2022-05-01 at the Wayback Machine", HuffPost (February 4, 2016): "While there has been a certain amount of sexism surrounding resting bitch face -- even the name itself is laced with it -- the computer detected RBF as frequently in men as it did in women."