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Holistic Face Processing in Newborns, 3‐Month‐Old Infants, and Adults: Evidence From the Composite Face Effect
Author(s) -
Turati Chiara,
Di Giorgio Elisa,
Bardi Lara,
Simion Francesca
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
child development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.103
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1467-8624
pISSN - 0009-3920
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-8624.2010.01520.x
Subject(s) - psychology , face (sociological concept) , developmental psychology , child development , infant development , sociology , social science
Holistic face processing was investigated in newborns, 3‐month‐old infants, and adults through a modified version of the composite face paradigm and the recording of eye movements. After familiarization to the top portion of a face, participants ( N = 70) were shown 2 aligned or misaligned faces, 1 of which comprised the familiar top part. In the aligned condition, no visual preference was found at any group age. In the misaligned condition, 3‐month‐olds preferred the face stimulus with the familiar top part, adults preferred the face stimulus with the novel one, and newborns did not manifest any visual preference. Results revealed that both infants’ and adults’ eye movements may be affected by holistic face information and demonstrated holistic face processing in 3‐month‐olds.