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Facial features and recognition memory: Eye‐movement study on the encoding and retrieval of unfamiliar child faces in children and adults
Author(s) -
Rollins Leslie,
Bertero Erin,
Hunter Laurie
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
infant and child development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.87
H-Index - 57
eISSN - 1522-7219
pISSN - 1522-7227
DOI - 10.1002/icd.2148
Subject(s) - psychology , gaze , eye movement , encoding (memory) , eye tracking , facial recognition system , developmental psychology , cognitive psychology , face perception , face (sociological concept) , recognition memory , cognition , perception , artificial intelligence , pattern recognition (psychology) , neuroscience , social science , sociology , computer science , psychoanalysis
This study examined eye movements to unfamiliar child faces as a function of memory in children and adults. Young adults ( n = 30) and 7‐ to 11‐year‐old children ( n = 30) performed a recognition memory task with neutral child faces. At encoding, fixating on internal features, especially the eye region, was associated with subsequently forgetting the face. During retrieval, children and adults fixated on internal features and the nose of correctly recognized faces more than novel faces. However, age‐related differences were present in fixations to individual facial features. Adults viewed the eye region of correctly recognized faces more than novel faces, whereas children's gaze behavior of the eye region did not differ as a function of viewing history. This finding suggests an increase in the reliance on the eye region, which provides critical information for social communication, for face recognition from middle childhood to young adulthood. Highlights Encoding of external features supports face recognition Children and adults fixate less on external features of previously viewed than novel faces Adults, but not children, view the eye region of previously viewed faces more than novel faces