Article
Perceptual Learning and Face Processing in Infancy
Developmental Psychobiology
(2016)
Abstract
Configural information (spacing between features) contributes to face-processing expertise in adulthood. We examined whether infants can be “trained” to process this information. In Experiment 1, 3.5-month-olds failed to discriminate changes in the spacing between facial features. However, in Experiments 2 and 3, infants processed the same information after being primed with faces in which the spacing was repeatedly altered. Experiment 4 found that priming was not effective with inverted faces or with faces depicting changes in features but not relations among features, indicating that the priming exhibited in Experiments 2 and 3 was specific to upright faces depicting spacing changes. Thus, even young infants who do not readily process facial configural information can be induced to do so through priming. These findings suggest that learning to encode critical structural information contributes to the development of face processing expertise.
Keywords
- configural face processing,
- infancy,
- perceptual learning,
- social cognition,
- priming
Disciplines
Publication Date
November, 2016
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1002/dev.21420
Citation Information
Ashley Galati, Alyson J. Hock and Ramesh S. Bhatt. "Perceptual Learning and Face Processing in Infancy" Developmental Psychobiology Vol. 58 Iss. 7 (2016) p. 829 - 840 ISSN: 1098-2302 Available at: http://works.bepress.com/alyson-chroust/3/