Fisher Katie, Towler John, Eimer Martin
a Department of Psychological Sciences, Birkbeck College , University of London , London , UK.
Cogn Neurosci. 2016 Jan-Oct;7(1-4):128-37. doi: 10.1080/17588928.2015.1053441. Epub 2015 Jun 17.
Face recognition is known to be impaired when the contrast polarity of the eyes is inverted. We studied how contrast affects early perceptual face processing by measuring the face-sensitive N170 component to face images when the contrast of the eyes and of the rest of the face was independently manipulated. Fixation was either located on the eye region or on the lower part of a face. Contrast-reversal of the eyes triggered delayed and enhanced N170 components independently of the contrast of other face parts, and regardless of gaze location. Similar N170 modulations were observed when the rest of a face was contrast-inverted, but only when gaze was directed away from the eyes. Results demonstrate that the contrast of the eyes and of other face parts can both affect face perception, but that the contrast polarity of the eye region has a privileged role during early stages of face processing.
众所周知，当眼睛的对比度极性反转时，人脸识别能力会受损。我们通过独立操纵眼睛和面部其他部分的对比度，测量面部敏感的N170成分对面部图像的反应，研究了对比度如何影响早期的面部感知处理。注视点要么位于眼睛区域，要么位于面部下部。眼睛的对比度反转会触发延迟和增强的N170成分，这与其他面部部分的对比度无关，也与注视位置无关。当面部其他部分的对比度反转时，也观察到了类似的N170调制，但只有当注视点远离眼睛时才会出现。结果表明，眼睛和其他面部部分的对比度都可以影响面部感知，但眼睛区域的对比度极性在面部处理的早期阶段具有特殊作用。
