Vanessa Van EdwardsScience of People, Science Of People · Behavioral Researcher, Founder, Author, Harvard Instructor

How to Tell Surprise from Fear

18 Feb 2026 · 1 min

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In this segment of her YouTube video, Vanessa Van Edwards explains how to differentiate the facial expressions of surprise and fear. She notes that surprise expressions occupy more facial space and last longer, while fear expressions are more contracted. The key visual cue is the eyebrows: surprise creates an upside‑down‑U shape, whereas fear flattens the eyebrows and adds wrinkles. She reinforces the point with side‑by‑side photographic examples showing the broader, open face of surprise versus the tighter, guarded look of fear.

Chapters

The difference between surprise and fear. Surprise is longer. It takes up more space. Fear is a lot more contracted. We still open, but we're afraid. Remember, we go or we don't want to open as much. We don't feel safe. The biggest difference is actually in the eyebrows. So typically in surprise, the eyebrows make an upside down U. So if you look at a face, the eyebrows make an upside down U. In fear, the eyebrows make a flat line along with the wrinkles. That's the easiest way to tell the difference. Another example for you here. So here's upside down use versus flat across surprise versus fear. You can see surprise is longer. Her face takes up more space. Base in the photo versus fear, which is a little bit more contracted.