We use those signals to make quick judgments about how someone might be feeling.
A cartoon removes many of those clues.
There are no detailed facial expressions to examine.
That forces us to rely on whatever information remains.
We might focus on the couple’s posture.
We might compare their positioning.
We might look at their hands.
We might pay attention to whether one person appears to be leaning toward the other.
And when those clues are ambiguous, our minds may fill in the gaps.
This is one reason these puzzles can produce different answers from different people.
Two people can look at exactly the same picture and notice completely different things.
One person might see closeness.
Another might see independence.
Someone else might focus almost entirely on color.
None of those interpretations necessarily tells us what the illustrated characters are actually feeling.
But they can tell us something about what the viewer considers important.
