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Yuan Y, Shang J, Gao C, Sommer W, Li W. A premium for positive social interest and attractive voices in the acceptability of unfair offers? An ERP study. Eur J Neurosci 2024; 60:4078-4094. [PMID: 38777332 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.16422] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2024] [Revised: 04/18/2024] [Accepted: 05/05/2024] [Indexed: 05/25/2024]
Abstract
Although the attractiveness of voices plays an important role in social interactions, it is unclear how voice attractiveness and social interest influence social decision-making. Here, we combined the ultimatum game with recording event-related brain potentials (ERPs) and examined the effect of attractive versus unattractive voices of the proposers, expressing positive versus negative social interest ("I like you" vs. "I don't like you"), on the acceptance of the proposal. Overall, fair offers were accepted at significantly higher rates than unfair offers, and high voice attractiveness increased acceptance rates for all proposals. In ERPs in response to the voices, their attractiveness and expressed social interests yielded early additive effects in the N1 component, followed by interactions in the subsequent P2, P3 and N400 components. More importantly, unfair offers elicited a larger Medial Frontal Negativity (MFN) than fair offers but only when the proposer's voice was unattractive or when the voice carried positive social interest. These results suggest that both voice attractiveness and social interest moderate social decision-making and there is a similar "beauty premium" for voices as for faces.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yan Yuan
- Research Center of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian, China
- Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Dalian, Liaoning Province, China
| | - Junchen Shang
- School of Humanities, Southeast University, Jiangsu, China
| | - Chunhai Gao
- College of Education, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Werner Sommer
- Institut für Psychologie, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Department of Psychology, Zhejiang Normal University, Jin Hua, China
- Department of Physics and Life Sciences Imaging Center, Hongkong Baptist University, Hong Kong
- Faculty of Education, National University of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
| | - Weijun Li
- Research Center of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian, China
- Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Dalian, Liaoning Province, China
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2
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Gemignani M, Giannotti M, Rigo P, Venuti P, de Falco S. Neither Parents' Sex Nor the Type of Family Modulates Attentional Bias Toward Infant Faces: A Preliminary Study in Different-Sex and Same-Sex Parents. ARCHIVES OF SEXUAL BEHAVIOR 2024; 53:2053-2061. [PMID: 38811490 PMCID: PMC11176217 DOI: 10.1007/s10508-024-02875-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2023] [Revised: 04/17/2024] [Accepted: 04/18/2024] [Indexed: 05/31/2024]
Abstract
An attentional bias toward infant versus adult faces has been detected in parents and positively associated with sensitive caregiving behaviors. In previous research, the attentional bias has been measured as the difference in attention, in terms of reaction times, captured by infant versus adult faces; the larger the difference, the greater the cognitive engagement that adults deployed to infant faces. However, research so far has been mostly confined to samples of mothers, who have been more represented than fathers. Moreover, new family forms, especially same-sex families of men, have been left out of research. To clarify potential sex differences and extend previous findings to diverse family forms, we implemented a modified Go/no-Go attentional task measuring attentional bias to infant faces in parents with children aged from 2 to 36 months. The sample (N = 86) was matched and included 22 fathers and 22 mothers from different-sex families and 20 fathers and 22 mothers from same-sex families. Overall, the results confirmed that infant faces induced a greater attentional bias compared to adult faces. Moreover, we found that neither the type of family nor parents' sex modulated the attentional bias toward infant faces. The findings are discussed in relation to the importance of understanding the correlates of parental response to infant cues going beyond a heteronormative perspective on parenting.
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Affiliation(s)
- Micol Gemignani
- Department of Psychology and Cognitive Science, University of Trento, Corso Bettini 84, 38068, Rovereto, TN, Italy.
| | - Michele Giannotti
- Department of Psychology and Cognitive Science, University of Trento, Corso Bettini 84, 38068, Rovereto, TN, Italy
| | - Paola Rigo
- Department of Developmental Psychology and Socialisation, University of Padua, Padua, PD, Italy
| | - Paola Venuti
- Department of Psychology and Cognitive Science, University of Trento, Corso Bettini 84, 38068, Rovereto, TN, Italy
| | - Simona de Falco
- Department of Psychology and Cognitive Science, University of Trento, Corso Bettini 84, 38068, Rovereto, TN, Italy
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3
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Liu M, Sommer W, Yue S, Li W. Dominance of face over voice in human attractiveness judgments: ERP evidence. Psychophysiology 2023; 60:e14358. [PMID: 37271749 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.14358] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2021] [Revised: 04/27/2023] [Accepted: 05/12/2023] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
The attractiveness of a person, a complex, and socially relevant type of information, is transmitted in many ways, not least through face and voice. However, it is unclear how the stimulus domains carrying attractiveness information interact. The present study explored the audiovisual perception of attractiveness in a Stroop-like paradigm using event-related potentials (ERPs). Participants were presented with face-voice pairs carrying congruent or incongruent attractiveness information and, in turn, judged the attractiveness level of each domain while ignoring the other. Voice attractiveness judgments were influenced by unattended face attractiveness, in terms of both, early perceptual encoding (N170, P200) as well as later evaluative stages (N400, LPC). In contrast, effects of unattended voice attractiveness on face attractiveness judgments were confined to early perceptual encoding (N170). These results demonstrate not only the interaction of multiple domains in human attractiveness perception at different processing stages but also a relative dominance of face over voice attractiveness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meng Liu
- Research Center of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian, China
- Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian, China
| | - Werner Sommer
- Institut für Psychologie, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Department of Psychology, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, China
- Institute for Creativity, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong, China
| | - Siqi Yue
- Research Center of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian, China
- Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian, China
| | - Weijun Li
- Research Center of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian, China
- Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian, China
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4
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Hou X, Shang J, Tong S. Neural Mechanisms of the Conscious and Subliminal Processing of Facial Attractiveness. Brain Sci 2023; 13:855. [PMID: 37371335 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci13060855] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2023] [Revised: 05/22/2023] [Accepted: 05/23/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023] Open
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to investigate the neural activity evoked by facial attractiveness in conscious and subliminal conditions. The 41 participants judged facial attractiveness in a conscious condition and a subliminal condition (backward masking paradigm). The event-related potential (ERP) analysis indicated that in the conscious condition, more attractive faces elicited a longer N1 (80-120 ms) latency than less attractive faces. Moreover, more attractive female faces elicited a larger late positive component (LPC) (350-550 ms) amplitude than less attractive female faces. In the subliminal condition, more attractive faces elicited a longer P1 (140-180 ms) latency than less attractive faces. The present study demonstrated that more attractive faces evoked different early-stage ERPs from that evoked by less attractive faces in both conscious and subliminal conditions. However, the processing of facial attractiveness is obviously weakened in the subliminal condition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xuejiao Hou
- College of Education, Suihua University, Suihua 152061, China
| | - Junchen Shang
- Department of Medical Humanities, School of Humanities, Southeast University, Nanjing 211189, China
- College of Psychology, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian 116029, China
| | - Shuo Tong
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Learning and Cognition, School of Psychology, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China
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5
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Pazhoohi F, Arantes J, Kingstone A, Pinal D. Neural Correlates and Perceived Attractiveness of Male and Female Shoulder-to-Hip Ratio in Men and Women: An EEG Study. ARCHIVES OF SEXUAL BEHAVIOR 2023:10.1007/s10508-023-02610-w. [PMID: 37170034 DOI: 10.1007/s10508-023-02610-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2022] [Revised: 04/18/2023] [Accepted: 04/20/2023] [Indexed: 05/13/2023]
Abstract
While there are studies regarding the neural correlates of human facial attractiveness, there are few investigations considering neural responses for body form attractiveness. The most prominent physical feature defining men's attractiveness is their physical fitness and upper body strength. Shoulder-to-hip ratio (SHR), a sexually dimorphic trait in humans, is an indicator of men's attractiveness for both men and women. The current study is the first to report on the neurophysiological responses to male and female body forms varying in SHR in healthy heterosexual men and women observers. Electroencephalographic (EEG) signals were acquired while participants completed an oddball task as well as a subsequent attractiveness judgement task. Behavioral results showed larger SHRs were considered more attractive than smaller SHRs, regardless of stimuli and participants' sex. The electrophysiological results for both the oddball task and the explicit judgement of attractiveness showed that brain activity related to male SHR body stimuli differed depending on the specific ratios, both at early and late processing stages. For female avatars, SHR did not modulate neural activity. Collectively the data implicate posterior brain regions in the perception of body forms that differ in attractiveness vis-a-vis variation of SHR, and frontal brain regions when such perceptions are rated explicitly.
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Affiliation(s)
- Farid Pazhoohi
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, 2136 West Mall, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z4, Canada.
| | - Joana Arantes
- Department of Basic Psychology, School of Psychology, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
| | - Alan Kingstone
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, 2136 West Mall, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - Diego Pinal
- Psychological Neuroscience Lab, CIPsi, School of Psychology, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
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Revers H, Van Deun K, Vroomen J, Bastiaansen M. Neural responses to facial attractiveness: event-related potentials differentiate between salience and valence effects. Biol Psychol 2023; 179:108549. [PMID: 37004907 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2023.108549] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2022] [Revised: 03/13/2023] [Accepted: 03/29/2023] [Indexed: 04/03/2023]
Abstract
We examined the neural correlates of facial attractiveness by presenting pictures of male or female faces (neutral expression) with low/intermediate/high attractiveness to 48 male or female participants while recording their electroencephalogram (EEG). Subjective attractiveness ratings were used to determine the 10% highest, 10% middlemost, and 10% lowest rated faces for each individual participant to allow for high contrast comparisons. These were then split into preferred and dispreferred gender categories. ERP components P1, N1, P2, N2, early posterior negativity (EPN), P300 and late positive potential (LPP) (up until 3000 ms post-stimulus), and the face specific N170 were analysed. A salience effect (attractive/unattractive > intermediate) in an early LPP interval (450-850 ms) and a long-lasting valence related effect (attractive > unattractive) in a late LPP interval (1000-3000 ms) were elicited by the preferred gender faces but not by the dispreferred gender faces. Multi-variate pattern analysis (MVPA)-classifications on whole-brain single-trial EEG patterns further confirmed these salience and valence effects. It is concluded that, facial attractiveness elicits neural responses that are indicative of valenced experiences, but only if these faces are considered relevant. These experiences take time to develop and last well beyond the interval that is commonly explored.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hans Revers
- Department of Cognitive Neuropsychology, Tilburg University, The Netherlands.
| | - Katrijn Van Deun
- Department of Methodology & Statistics, Tilburg University, The Netherlands
| | - Jean Vroomen
- Department of Cognitive Neuropsychology, Tilburg University, The Netherlands
| | - Marcel Bastiaansen
- Department of Cognitive Neuropsychology, Tilburg University, The Netherlands; Academy for Leisure & Events, Breda University of Applied Sciences, Breda, The Netherlands
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Balconi M, Kopiś-Posiej N, Venturella I, Zabielska-Mendyk E, Augustynowicz P, Angioletti L. The Effect of Cognitive Strategies and Facial Attractiveness on Empathic Neural Responses. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2022; 19:14617. [PMID: 36361497 PMCID: PMC9656427 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph192114617] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2022] [Revised: 11/03/2022] [Accepted: 11/04/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Empathy is a phenomenon that brings together both emotions and an understanding of another person. Recent studies have disentangled the mechanisms of empathy into emotional and cognitive aspects. Event-related potential (ERP) studies suggest that emotional empathy is related to the modulation of the amplitude of early ERPs, and cognitive empathy is linked to later ERPs. In the current study, we examined the influences of facial attractiveness on empathic response and the effect of cognitive strategies with setting the participants' attention to attractiveness or pain. Participants (N= 19) viewed photos of physically attractive and unattractive men and women receiving painful stimulation. The amplitude of the N2 component measured at the frontal regions was more negative in painful stimulation compared to the non-painful, but only for attractive faces. There were no differences between painful and non-painful stimulation for unattractive faces. The amplitude of the P3 measured at the central-parietal region component was more positive in the painful condition compared to the non-painful one, but only when participants performed a pain judgment task. There were no differences in the attractiveness judgment task. This study showed that the attractiveness of a model and drawing the participants' attention to pain constitute an essential modulator of pain empathy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michela Balconi
- International Research Center for Cognitive Applied Neuroscience (IrcCAN), Universita Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 20123 Milan, Italy
- Research Unit in Affective and Social Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Universita Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 20123 Milan, Italy
| | - Natalia Kopiś-Posiej
- Department of Clinical Neuropsychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Medical University of Lublin, 20-059 Lublin, Poland
- Department of Experimental Psychology, The Institute of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, The John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin, 20-950 Lublin, Poland
| | - Irene Venturella
- Research Unit in Affective and Social Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Universita Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 20123 Milan, Italy
| | - Emilia Zabielska-Mendyk
- Department of Experimental Psychology, The Institute of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, The John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin, 20-950 Lublin, Poland
| | - Paweł Augustynowicz
- Department of Experimental Psychology, The Institute of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, The John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin, 20-950 Lublin, Poland
| | - Laura Angioletti
- International Research Center for Cognitive Applied Neuroscience (IrcCAN), Universita Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 20123 Milan, Italy
- Research Unit in Affective and Social Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Universita Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 20123 Milan, Italy
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De Bartolo D, De Luca M, Antonucci G, Schuster S, Morone G, Paolucci S, Iosa M. The golden ratio as an ecological affordance leading to aesthetic attractiveness. Psych J 2022; 11:729-740. [PMID: 34951139 PMCID: PMC9787369 DOI: 10.1002/pchj.505] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2021] [Revised: 11/03/2021] [Accepted: 11/04/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
The golden ratio (GR) is an irrational number (close to 1.618) that repeatedly occurs in nature as well as in masterpieces of art. The GR has been considered a proportion perfectly representing beauty since ancient times, and it was investigated in several scientific fields, but with conflicting results. This study aims at investigating if this proportion is associated with a judgment of beauty independently of the type of the stimulus, and the factors that may affect this aesthetic preference. In Experiment 1, an online psychophysical questionnaire was administered to 256 volunteers asked to choose among three possible proportions between the parts of the same stimulus (GR, 1.5, and 1.8). In Experiment 2, we recorded eye movements in 15 participants who had to express an aesthetic judgment on the same stimuli of Experiment 1. The results revealed a slight overall preference for GR (53%, p < .001), with higher preferences for stimuli representing humans, anthropomorphic sculptures, and paintings, regardless of the cultural level. In Experiment 2, a shorter dwell time was significantly associated with a better aesthetic judgment (p = .005), suggesting the possibility that GR could be associated with easier visual processing, and it could be hence considered as a visual affordance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniela De Bartolo
- Santa Lucia FoundationRomeItaly,Department of PsychologySapienza University of RomeRomeItaly
| | | | - Gabriella Antonucci
- Santa Lucia FoundationRomeItaly,Department of PsychologySapienza University of RomeRomeItaly
| | - Stefan Schuster
- Department of BioinformaticsFriedrich Schiller University JenaJenaGermany
| | | | | | - Marco Iosa
- Santa Lucia FoundationRomeItaly,Department of PsychologySapienza University of RomeRomeItaly
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9
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Karim AKMR, Proulx MJ, de Sousa AA, Likova LT. Do we enjoy what we sense and perceive? A dissociation between aesthetic appreciation and basic perception of environmental objects or events. COGNITIVE, AFFECTIVE & BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE 2022; 22:904-951. [PMID: 35589909 PMCID: PMC10159614 DOI: 10.3758/s13415-022-01004-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/27/2022] [Indexed: 05/06/2023]
Abstract
This integrative review rearticulates the notion of human aesthetics by critically appraising the conventional definitions, offerring a new, more comprehensive definition, and identifying the fundamental components associated with it. It intends to advance holistic understanding of the notion by differentiating aesthetic perception from basic perceptual recognition, and by characterizing these concepts from the perspective of information processing in both visual and nonvisual modalities. To this end, we analyze the dissociative nature of information processing in the brain, introducing a novel local-global integrative model that differentiates aesthetic processing from basic perceptual processing. This model builds on the current state of the art in visual aesthetics as well as newer propositions about nonvisual aesthetics. This model comprises two analytic channels: aesthetics-only channel and perception-to-aesthetics channel. The aesthetics-only channel primarily involves restricted local processing for quality or richness (e.g., attractiveness, beauty/prettiness, elegance, sublimeness, catchiness, hedonic value) analysis, whereas the perception-to-aesthetics channel involves global/extended local processing for basic feature analysis, followed by restricted local processing for quality or richness analysis. We contend that aesthetic processing operates independently of basic perceptual processing, but not independently of cognitive processing. We further conjecture that there might be a common faculty, labeled as aesthetic cognition faculty, in the human brain for all sensory aesthetics albeit other parts of the brain can also be activated because of basic sensory processing prior to aesthetic processing, particularly during the operation of the second channel. This generalized model can account not only for simple and pure aesthetic experiences but for partial and complex aesthetic experiences as well.
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Affiliation(s)
- A K M Rezaul Karim
- Department of Psychology, University of Dhaka, Dhaka, 1000, Bangladesh.
- Envision Research Institute, 610 N. Main St., Wichita, KS, USA.
- The Smith-Kettlewell Eye Research Institute, 2318 Fillmore St., San Francisco, CA, USA.
| | | | | | - Lora T Likova
- The Smith-Kettlewell Eye Research Institute, 2318 Fillmore St., San Francisco, CA, USA
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10
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Arai T, Nittono H. Cosmetic makeup enhances facial attractiveness and affective neural responses. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0272923. [PMID: 35969525 PMCID: PMC9377592 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0272923] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2021] [Accepted: 07/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Although it is well established that cosmetic makeup enhances perceived facial attractiveness, few studies have examined whether facial makeup modulates neural responses to face images. This study investigated behavioral and attractiveness-related brain responses to self-applied makeup, focusing on the N170, early posterior negativity, P300, and late positive potential components of event-related brain potentials. A total of 77 Japanese women participated in two experiments (N = 34 and 43 for Experiments 1 and 2, respectively). Experiment 1 assessed the effects of self-applied makeup on attractiveness-related event-related potential amplitudes using facial images during a makeup identification task in which makeup was directly relevant to task demands. Experiment 2 examined the effects of self-applied makeup using images of one’s own face and another female’s face when performing a gender classification task, where the presence of makeup had no explicit connection to facial gender classification. In both experiments, faces with makeup were rated as more attractive and elicited more negative early posterior negativity and more positive late positive potential components, regardless of the participant’s own face or another person’s face. These findings suggest that people are spontaneously motivated to pay visual attention to faces with makeup, which supports the idea that makeup adds reward value to the facial appearance of the human. Moreover, neural evidence empirically confirmed that the benefits of makeup are not just limited to how others see your face but also extend to how you see your own face.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tomohiro Arai
- Shiseido Co., Ltd. MIRAI Technology Institute, Kanagawa, Japan
- * E-mail:
| | - Hiroshi Nittono
- Graduate School of Human Sciences, Osaka University, Suita, Japan
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11
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Kaiser D. Characterizing Dynamic Neural Representations of Scene Attractiveness. J Cogn Neurosci 2022; 34:1988-1997. [PMID: 35802607 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_01891] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
Aesthetic experiences during natural vision are varied: They can arise from viewing scenic landscapes, interesting architecture, or attractive people. Recent research in the field of neuroaesthetics has taught us a lot about where in the brain such aesthetic experiences are represented. Much less is known about when such experiences arise during the cortical processing cascade. Particularly, the dynamic neural representation of perceived attractiveness for rich natural scenes is not well understood. Here, I present data from an EEG experiment, in which participants provided attractiveness judgments for a set of diverse natural scenes. Using multivariate pattern analysis, I demonstrate that scene attractiveness is mirrored in early brain signals that arise within 200 msec of vision, suggesting that the aesthetic appeal of scenes is first resolved during perceptual processing. In more detailed analyses, I show that even such early neural correlates of scene attractiveness are partly related to interindividual variation in aesthetic preferences and that they generalize across scene contents. Together, these results characterize the time-resolved neural dynamics that give rise to aesthetic experiences in complex natural environments.
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12
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Gupta N, White H, Trott S, Spiegel JH. Observer Gaze Patterns of Patient Photographs Before and After Facial Feminization. Aesthet Surg J 2022; 42:725-732. [PMID: 34994379 DOI: 10.1093/asj/sjab434] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Human interaction begins with visual evaluation of others, and this often centers on the face. Objective measurement of this evaluation gives clues to social perception. OBJECTIVES The objective of this study was to use eye-tracking technology to evaluate if there are scanpath differences when observers view faces of cisgender men, cisgender women, and transgender women before and after facial feminization surgery (FFS) including when assigning tasks assessing femininity, attractiveness, and likability. METHODS Undergraduate psychology students were prospectively recruited as observers at a single institution. Their eye movements were recorded by eye-tracking technology when they were presented with frontal photographs of prototypical male, prototypical female, and pre- and post-FFS faces in a random order and then with prompting to assess femininity, attractiveness, and likability. RESULTS Twenty-seven observers performed the tasks. Participants focused their attention more on the central triangle of post-FFS and prototypical female images and on the forehead of pre-FFS and prototypical male images. Higher femininity ratings were associated with longer proportional fixations to the central triangle and lower proportional fixations to the forehead. CONCLUSIONS This preliminary study implies the scanpath for viewing a post-FFS face is closer to that for viewing a prototypical female than a prototypical male based on differences viewing the forehead and brow vs the central triangle.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nikita Gupta
- Division of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of Kentucky , Lexington, KY , USA
| | - Hannah White
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Missouri-St. Louis , St. Louis, MO , USA
| | - Skylar Trott
- Division of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of Kentucky , Lexington, KY , USA
| | - Jeffrey H Spiegel
- Division of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Boston University School of Medicine , Boston, MA , USA
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13
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Shang J, Liu Z. Vocal Attractiveness Matters: Social Preferences in Cooperative Behavior. Front Psychol 2022; 13:877530. [PMID: 35693505 PMCID: PMC9177437 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.877530] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2022] [Accepted: 04/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Research has shown the phenomenon that "what sounds beautiful is good" is a stereotype. It is not clear whether vocal attractiveness affects social decision-making in economic games. Using a modified trust game task, we investigated the neural mechanism of the influence of vocal attractiveness on cooperative decision-making. Participants first heard the voice (attractive or unattractive) of the partner. They had enough time to decide whether to cooperate with the partner for a chance to earn monetary rewards. The behavioral results showed that participants made more invest choices in the attractive partner condition, and they were more likely to cooperate with the female partners in the unattractive voice condition. The event-related potential (ERP) analysis for voice stimuli showed that attractive voices induced larger N1 amplitude than unattractive voices only in the male voice condition. And female voices elicited smaller N1 and larger P2 amplitudes than male voices in both the attractive and unattractive voices condition. A larger P3 amplitude was evoked by female voices and attractive voices. In addition, a more positive late positive complex (LPC) was induced by male voices and attractive voices. This study suggested that attractive voices facilitated cooperative behavior, providing evidence for the "beauty premium" effect of the attractive voices. Moreover, participants were more likely to cooperate with female partners. In the early stage, gender information and male vocal attractiveness were processed automatically, suggesting that male vocal attractiveness was processed preferentially than the female voice. In the late stage, participants allocated attention to both male and female vocal attractiveness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junchen Shang
- Department of Medical Humanities, School of Humanities, Southeast University, Nanjing, China
| | - Zhihui Liu
- School of Psychology, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian, China
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14
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Feng G, Lei J. The Effect of Odor Valence on Facial Attractiveness Judgment: A Preliminary Experiment. Brain Sci 2022; 12:brainsci12050665. [PMID: 35625051 PMCID: PMC9139389 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci12050665] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2022] [Revised: 05/16/2022] [Accepted: 05/18/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The role of social odors on human social interactions, including face evaluation, has been widely indicated. However, for nonsocial odors, there has not been a consistent conclusion. Therefore, this study aimed to verify the effect of suprathreshold nonsocial odors on facial attractiveness judgment when the visual input is ambiguous. We designed a 3 (odor valence: neutral, pleasant, and unpleasant) × 7 (continuous levels of morphed fuzziness of attractiveness: 37.5% to 62.5%) within-subject experiment. A total of 30 participants (18 females) completed the whole experiment simultaneously for three consecutive days. The results showed that faces presented with pleasant and neutral odors were judged as significantly more attractive than those with unpleasant odors. The intervention effect of odor valence on facial attractiveness differed by fuzzy attractiveness levels. Results also suggested that male faces were perceived as more attractive than female faces no matter the odor conditions. The results of this study provide evidence to support the cross-modal emotion integration effect of olfaction and vision. Follow-up studies need to be conducted to reveal the underlying mechanism of odor valence on visual fact attractive judgment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guo Feng
- Psychological Research and Counseling Center, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu 611756, China
- Institute of Applied Psychology, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu 611756, China
| | - Jiawei Lei
- Psychological Research and Counseling Center, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu 611756, China
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15
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Beauty in everyday motion: Electrophysiological correlates of aesthetic preference for human walking. Neuropsychologia 2022; 170:108232. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2022.108232] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2021] [Revised: 03/29/2022] [Accepted: 03/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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16
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Cheng Q, Han Z, Liu S, Kong Y, Weng X, Mo L. Neural responses to facial attractiveness in the judgments of moral goodness and moral beauty. Brain Struct Funct 2021; 227:843-863. [PMID: 34767078 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-021-02422-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2020] [Accepted: 10/27/2021] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
The judgments of moral goodness and moral beauty objectively refer to the perception and evaluation of moral traits, which are generally influenced by facial attractiveness. For centuries, people have equated beauty with the possession of positive qualities, but it is not clear whether the association between beauty and positive qualities exerts a similarly implicit influence on people's responses to moral goodness and moral beauty, how it affects those responses, and what is the neural basis for such an effect. The present study is the first to examine the neural responses to facial attractiveness in the judgments of moral goodness and moral beauty. We found that beautiful faces in both moral judgments activated the left ventral occipitotemporal cortices sensitive to the geometric configuration of the faces, demonstrating that both moral goodness and moral beauty required the automatic visual analysis of geometrical configuration of attractive faces. In addition, compared to beautiful faces during moral goodness judgment, beautiful faces during moral beauty judgment induced unique activity in the ventral medial prefrontal cortex and midline cortical structures involved in the emotional-valenced information about attractive faces. The opposite comparison elicited specific activity in the left superior temporal cortex and premotor area, which play a critical role in the recognition of facial identity. Our results demonstrated that the neural responses to facial attractiveness in the process of higher order moral decision-makings exhibit both task-general and task-specific characteristics. Our findings contribute to the understanding of the essence of the relationship between morality and aesthetics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiuping Cheng
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, No. 55 West Zhongshan Avenue, Tianhe District, Guangzhou, 510631, China
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China
- Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Zhili Han
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, No. 55 West Zhongshan Avenue, Tianhe District, Guangzhou, 510631, China
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Brain Functional Genomics (Ministry of Education), School of Psychology and Cognitive Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai, 200062, China
- NYU-ECNU Institute of Brain and Cognitive Science, New York University, Shanghai, 200062, China
| | - Shun Liu
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, No. 55 West Zhongshan Avenue, Tianhe District, Guangzhou, 510631, China
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China
- Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Yilong Kong
- School of Music, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Xuchu Weng
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, No. 55 West Zhongshan Avenue, Tianhe District, Guangzhou, 510631, China
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China
- Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Lei Mo
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, No. 55 West Zhongshan Avenue, Tianhe District, Guangzhou, 510631, China.
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China.
- Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China.
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China.
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17
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Cao Y, Zhang Y, Ding Y, Duffy VG, Zhang X. Is an anthropomorphic app icon more attractive? Evidence from neuroergonomomics. APPLIED ERGONOMICS 2021; 97:103545. [PMID: 34352470 DOI: 10.1016/j.apergo.2021.103545] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2019] [Revised: 07/21/2021] [Accepted: 07/24/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Exploring what types of app icons are attractive has been a topic of great interest in recent years. The main purpose of this study was to explore the neural mechanism of attention capturing of the anthropomorphic app icons based on neuroergonomics. Participants' perception of different app icons was investigated by using event-related potentials (ERPs) and attractiveness evaluation. The results showed that anthropomorphic app icons were evaluated more attractive and elicted larger P2, P3 and LPP amplitude than non-anthropomorphic app icons, which indicated an attention bias to attractive anthropomprphic app icons. The time course of the attention towards anthropomorphic app icons includes three main processes: an early stimulus-driven perceptual detection of app icon features (P2 during 160-200 ms), an involuntary allocation of attention to evaluate and categorize app icons (P3 during 300-500 ms), and experiencing different emotions to anthropomorphic versus non-anthropomorphic app icons (LPP during 500-800 ms). That is, the process of users' perception and attention toward app icons combines "bottom-up" and "top-down" processes. Our findings suggest a new perspective to use ERP components (P2, P3, and LPP) to deep understanding of app icon design. A practical implication is that app icons could be designed using anthropomorphic elements to attract users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yaqin Cao
- School of Economics and Management, Anhui Polytechnic University, Wuhu, PR China; School of Industrial Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, USA.
| | - Yun Zhang
- School of Economics and Management, Anhui Polytechnic University, Wuhu, PR China
| | - Yi Ding
- School of Economics and Management, Anhui Polytechnic University, Wuhu, PR China; School of Industrial Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, USA.
| | - Vincent G Duffy
- School of Industrial Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, USA
| | - Xuefeng Zhang
- School of Economics and Management, Anhui Polytechnic University, Wuhu, PR China
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18
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Yuan G, Liu G, Wei D. Roles of P300 and Late Positive Potential in Initial Romantic Attraction. Front Neurosci 2021; 15:718847. [PMID: 34720856 PMCID: PMC8552996 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2021.718847] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2021] [Accepted: 09/03/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Initial romantic attraction (IRA) refers to a series of positive reactions to potential romantic partners at the initial encounter; it evolved to promote mate selection, allowing individuals to focus their mating efforts on their preferred potential mates. After decades of effort, we now have a deeper understanding of the evolutionary value and dominant factors of IRA; however, little is known regarding the brain mechanisms related to its generation and evaluation. In this study, we combined classic event-related potential analysis with dipole-source analysis to examine electroencephalogram (EEG) signals generated while participants assessed their romantic interest in potential partners. The EEG signals were categorized into IRA-engendered and unengendered conditions based on behavioral indicators. We found that the faces elicited multiple late positivities, including P300 over the occipital-parietal regions and late positive potentials (LPPs) over the anterior regions. When compared to faces that did not engender IRA, faces that did engender IRA elicited (1) enhanced P300 over the parietal regions and heightened neural activity in the insula and cingulate cortex and (2) larger LPPs over the anterior regions and heightened neural activity in the orbitofrontal cortex, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, cingulate cortex, frontal eye field, visual cortex, and insula. These results suggest IRA is generated and evaluated by an extensive brain network involved in emotion processing, attention control, and social evaluations. Furthermore, these findings indicate that P300 and LPP may represent different cognitive processes during IRA.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guangjie Yuan
- College of Electronic and Information Engineering, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
- Chongqing Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Chongqing, China
- Institute of Affective Computing and Information Processing, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
- Chongqing Key Laboratory of Nonlinear Circuits and Intelligent Information Processing, Chongqing, China
| | - Guangyuan Liu
- College of Electronic and Information Engineering, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
- Chongqing Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Chongqing, China
- Institute of Affective Computing and Information Processing, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
- Chongqing Key Laboratory of Nonlinear Circuits and Intelligent Information Processing, Chongqing, China
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Chongqing, China
| | - Dongtao Wei
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Chongqing, China
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19
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Zhan J, Liu M, Garrod OGB, Daube C, Ince RAA, Jack RE, Schyns PG. Modeling individual preferences reveals that face beauty is not universally perceived across cultures. Curr Biol 2021; 31:2243-2252.e6. [PMID: 33798430 PMCID: PMC8162177 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2021.03.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2020] [Revised: 01/15/2021] [Accepted: 03/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Facial attractiveness confers considerable advantages in social interactions,1,2 with preferences likely reflecting psychobiological mechanisms shaped by natural selection. Theories of universal beauty propose that attractive faces comprise features that are closer to the population average3 while optimizing sexual dimorphism.4 However, emerging evidence questions this model as an accurate representation of facial attractiveness,5, 6, 7 including representing the diversity of beauty preferences within and across cultures.8, 9, 10, 11, 12 Here, we demonstrate that Western Europeans (WEs) and East Asians (EAs) evaluate facial beauty using culture-specific features, contradicting theories of universality. With a data-driven method, we modeled, at both the individual and group levels, the attractive face features of young females (25 years old) in two matched groups each of 40 young male WE and EA participants. Specifically, we generated a broad range of same- and other-ethnicity female faces with naturally varying shapes and complexions. Participants rated each on attractiveness. We then reverse correlated the face features that drive perception of attractiveness in each participant. From these individual face models, we reconstructed a facial attractiveness representation space that explains preference variations. We show that facial attractiveness is distinct both from averageness and from sexual dimorphism in both cultures. Finally, we disentangled attractive face features into those shared across cultures, culture specific, and specific to individual participants, thereby revealing their diversity. Our results have direct theoretical and methodological impact for representing diversity in social perception and for the design of culturally and ethnically sensitive socially interactive digital agents. We modeled individual preferences for attractive faces in two cultures Attractive face features differ from the face average and sexual dimorphism Instead, culture and individual preferences shape attractive face features Attractive face features from a culture are used to judge other-ethnicity faces
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiayu Zhan
- Institute of Neuroscience and Psychology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland G12 8QB, UK.
| | - Meng Liu
- School of Psychology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland G12 8QB, UK
| | - Oliver G B Garrod
- Institute of Neuroscience and Psychology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland G12 8QB, UK
| | - Christoph Daube
- Institute of Neuroscience and Psychology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland G12 8QB, UK
| | - Robin A A Ince
- Institute of Neuroscience and Psychology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland G12 8QB, UK
| | - Rachael E Jack
- Institute of Neuroscience and Psychology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland G12 8QB, UK; School of Psychology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland G12 8QB, UK
| | - Philippe G Schyns
- Institute of Neuroscience and Psychology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland G12 8QB, UK; School of Psychology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland G12 8QB, UK.
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20
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Kaiser D, Nyga K. Tracking cortical representations of facial attractiveness using time-resolved representational similarity analysis. Sci Rep 2020; 10:16852. [PMID: 33033356 PMCID: PMC7546608 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-74009-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2020] [Accepted: 08/25/2020] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
When we see a face, we rapidly form an impression of its attractiveness. Here, we investigated how rapidly representations of facial attractiveness emerge in the human brain. In an EEG experiment, participants viewed 100 face photographs and rated them for their attractiveness. Using time-resolved representational similarity analysis on the EEG data, we reveal representations of facial attractiveness after 150-200 ms of cortical processing. Interestingly, we show that these representations are related to individual participants' personal attractiveness judgments, suggesting that already early perceptual representations of facial attractiveness convey idiosyncratic attractiveness preferences. Further, we show that these early representations are genuinely related to attractiveness, as they are neither explained by other high-level face attributes, such as face sex or age, nor by features extracted by an artificial deep neural network model of face processing. Together, our results demonstrate early, individually specific, and genuine representations of facial attractiveness, which may underlie fast attractiveness judgments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Kaiser
- Department of Psychology, University of York, Heslington, York, YO10 5DD, UK.
| | - Karen Nyga
- Department of Psychology, University of York, Heslington, York, YO10 5DD, UK
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21
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Han S, Liu S, Li Y, Li W, Wang X, Gan Y, Xu Q, Zhang L. Why do you attract me but not others? Retrieval of person knowledge and its generalization bring diverse judgments of facial attractiveness. Soc Neurosci 2020; 15:505-515. [PMID: 32602802 DOI: 10.1080/17470919.2020.1787223] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
Judgments of facial attractiveness play an important role in social interactions. However, it still remains unclear why these judgments are malleable. The present study aimed to understand whether the retrieval of person knowledge leads to different judgments of attractiveness of the same face. Event-related potentials and learning-recognition tasks were used to investigate the effects of person knowledge on facial attractiveness. The results showed that compared with familiar faces that were matched with negative person knowledge, those matched with positive person knowledge were evaluated as more attractive and evoked a larger early posterior negativity (EPN) and late positive complex (LPC). Additionally, positive similar faces had the same behavioral results and evoked large LPC, while unfamiliar faces did not have any significant effects. These results indicate that the effect of person knowledge on facial attractiveness occurs from early to late stage of facial attractiveness processing, and this effect could be generalized based on the similarity of the face structure, which occurred at the late stage. This mechanism may explain why individuals form different judgments of facial attractiveness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shangfeng Han
- Department and Institute of Psychology, Ningbo University , Ningbo, China.,Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Affective and Social Neuroscience, Shenzhen University , Shenzhen, China.,Center for Brain Disorders and Cognitive Sciences, Shenzhen University , Shenzhen, China.,Center for Neuroimaging, Shenzhen Institute of Neuroscience , Shenzhen, China
| | - Shen Liu
- School of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China , Hefei, China
| | - Yue Li
- Department and Institute of Psychology, Ningbo University , Ningbo, China.,KunMing Health Vocational College , KunMing, China
| | - Wanyue Li
- Department and Institute of Psychology, Ningbo University , Ningbo, China
| | - Xiujuan Wang
- Department and Institute of Psychology, Ningbo University , Ningbo, China
| | - Yetong Gan
- Department and Institute of Psychology, Ningbo University , Ningbo, China
| | - Qiang Xu
- Department and Institute of Psychology, Ningbo University , Ningbo, China
| | - Lin Zhang
- Department and Institute of Psychology, Ningbo University , Ningbo, China
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22
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Kou H, Xie Q, Bi T. Mechanisms for the Cognitive Processing of Attractiveness in Adult and Infant Faces: From the Evolutionary Perspective. Front Psychol 2020; 11:436. [PMID: 32218762 PMCID: PMC7078348 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00436] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2020] [Accepted: 02/25/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Research on the cognitive processing of facial attractiveness has mainly focused on adult faces. Recent studies have revealed that the cognitive processing of facial attractiveness in infant faces is not the same as that in adult faces. Therefore, it is necessary to summarize the evidence on the processing of facial attractiveness in each kind of face and compare their underlying mechanisms. In this paper, we first reviewed studies on the cognitive processing of facial attractiveness in adult faces, including attentional and mnemonic processing, and then discussed the underlying mechanisms. Afterward, studies on facial attractiveness in infant faces were reviewed, and the underlying mechanisms were also discussed. Direct comparisons between the two kinds of cognitive processing were subsequently made. The results showed that the mechanisms for the processing of attractiveness in adult faces and infant faces are mainly motivated by the perspectives of mate selection and raising offspring, respectively, in evolutionary psychology. Finally, directions for future research are proposed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hui Kou
- Center for Mental Health Research in School of Management, Zunyi Medical University, Guizhou, China
| | - Qinhong Xie
- School of Criminal Justice, China University of Political Science and Law, Beijing, China
| | - Taiyong Bi
- Center for Mental Health Research in School of Management, Zunyi Medical University, Guizhou, China
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23
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Luo Q, Rossion B, Dzhelyova M. A robust implicit measure of facial attractiveness discrimination. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2019; 14:737-746. [PMID: 31216033 PMCID: PMC6778828 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsz043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2018] [Revised: 06/03/2019] [Accepted: 06/10/2019] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Decisions of attractiveness from the human face are made instantly and spontaneously, but robust implicit neural measures of facial attractiveness discrimination are currently lacking. Here we applied fast periodic visual stimulation coupled with electroencephalography (EEG) to objectively measure the neural coding of facial attractiveness. We presented different pictures of faces at 6 Hz, i.e. six faces/second, for a minute while participants attended to a central fixation cross and indicated whether the cross shortly changed color. Every other face in the stimulation was attractive and was replaced by a relatively less attractive face. This resulted in alternating more/less attractive faces at a 3 Hz rate, eliciting a significant increase in occipito-temporal EEG amplitude at 3 Hz both at the group and the individual participant level. This response was absent in two control conditions where either only attractive or only less attractive faces were presented. These observations support the view that face-sensitive visual areas discriminate attractiveness implicitly and rapidly from the human face.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiuling Luo
- Institute of Psychology, School of Teacher Education, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, China
- Psychological Sciences Research Institute and Institute of Neuroscience, University of Louvain, Louvain la Neuve, Belgium
| | - Bruno Rossion
- Psychological Sciences Research Institute and Institute of Neuroscience, University of Louvain, Louvain la Neuve, Belgium
- Université de Lorraine, Centre Hospitalier Régional Universitaire-Nancy, Service de Neurologie, Nancy, France
- Centre de Recherche en Automatique de Nancy, Université de Lorraine, Le Centre national de la recherche scientifique, Nancy, France
| | - Milena Dzhelyova
- Psychological Sciences Research Institute and Institute of Neuroscience, University of Louvain, Louvain la Neuve, Belgium
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24
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Mothers' neural responses to infant faces are associated with activation of the maternal care system and observed intrusiveness with their own child. COGNITIVE AFFECTIVE & BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE 2019; 18:609-621. [PMID: 29651689 PMCID: PMC6096645 DOI: 10.3758/s13415-018-0592-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Certain infant facial characteristics, referred to as baby schema, are thought to automatically trigger parenting behavior and affective orientation toward infants. Electroencephalography (EEG) is well suited to assessing the intuitive nature and temporal dynamics of parenting responses, due to its millisecond temporal resolution. Little is known, however, about the relations between neural processing of infant cues and actual parenting behavior in a naturalistic setting. In the present study we examined the event-related potentials (ERPs) of mothers (N = 33) watching infant faces of varying attractiveness, in relation to activation of the maternal care system and the mothers’ observed parenting behavior (sensitivity, nonintrusiveness) with their own child (2–6 years old). The results revealed that, irrespective of the cuteness of the infant face, mothers’ neural processing of infant faces involved both early P1 and P2 components (related to orienting/detecting processes) and late positive potentials (LPPs; related to more controlled cognitive evaluation/attentional engagement). Increased early detection and processing of infant faces (reflected by P1 and P2 activity) was related to increased activation of the parental care system. In later stages of face processing, increased attentional engagement with infant faces (as reflected by LPP activity) was associated with more intrusiveness of a mother with her own child during interaction. These findings suggest that individual variations in responses to infant stimuli are associated with individual differences in parental care system activation and parenting quality. Furthermore, the parental care system might be activated relatively automatically, but actual parenting and caregiving behavior requires more conscious control.
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25
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Perception and Deception: Human Beauty and the Brain. Behav Sci (Basel) 2019; 9:bs9040034. [PMID: 30934856 PMCID: PMC6523404 DOI: 10.3390/bs9040034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2019] [Revised: 03/19/2019] [Accepted: 03/25/2019] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Human physical characteristics and their perception by the brain are under pressure by natural selection to optimize reproductive success. Men and women have different strategies to appear attractive and have different interests in identifying beauty in people. Nevertheless, men and women from all cultures agree on who is and who is not attractive, and throughout the world attractive people show greater acquisition of resources and greater reproductive success than others. The brain employs at least three modules, composed of interconnected brain regions, to judge facial attractiveness: one for identification, one for interpretation and one for valuing. Key elements that go into the judgment are age and health, as well as symmetry, averageness, face and body proportions, facial color and texture. These elements are all Costly Signals of reproductive fitness because they are difficult to fake. However, people deceive others using tricks such as coloring hair, cosmetics and clothing styles, while at the same time they also focus on detecting fakes. People may also deceive themselves, especially about their own attractiveness, and use self-signally actions to demonstrate to themselves their own true value. The neuroscience of beauty is best understood by considering the evolutionary pressures to maximize reproductive fitness.
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26
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Cheung MC, Law D, Yip J, Wong CWY. Emotional Responses to Visual Art and Commercial Stimuli: Implications for Creativity and Aesthetics. Front Psychol 2019; 10:14. [PMID: 30723437 PMCID: PMC6349741 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2018] [Accepted: 01/04/2019] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
There is an ongoing debate about whether emotional responses to artworks are similar to those produced by the commercial stimuli experienced in everyday life. In this study, we evaluated the emotional responses to the visual art and commercial stimuli by using electroencephalography (EEG) to obtain an objective measure of emotional responses of the brain, namely the frontal alpha asymmetry. Positive frontal alpha asymmetry suggests positive emotional responses, and vice versa. The visual art stimuli consisted of 80 artistic and naturally colored paintings whereas the commercial stimuli consisted of 80 different window displays of fashion collections. The results revealed that positive frontal alpha asymmetry was elicited when the participants judged the visual art stimuli as either beautiful or not beautiful. For the commercial stimuli, positive frontal alpha asymmetry was observed when they were considered as beautiful, whereas negative frontal alpha asymmetry was exhibited toward those perceived as not beautiful. These findings suggest more positive emotional responses to the visual art stimuli, regardless of their aesthetics. However, favorable emotional responses were only elicited toward the commercial stimuli regarded as beautiful. The implications for the creative and aesthetic design of the commercial stimuli in Chinese society in influencing consumers’ emotional responses are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mei-Chun Cheung
- Department of Social Work, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong
| | - Derry Law
- Institute of Textiles and Clothing, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Hong Kong
| | - Joanne Yip
- Institute of Textiles and Clothing, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Hong Kong
| | - Christina W Y Wong
- Institute of Textiles and Clothing, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Hong Kong
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27
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Zhang S, Wang H, Guo Q. Sex and Physiological Cycles Affect the Automatic Perception of Attractive Opposite-Sex Faces: A Visual Mismatch Negativity Study. EVOLUTIONARY PSYCHOLOGY 2018; 16:1474704918812140. [PMID: 30463433 PMCID: PMC10367536 DOI: 10.1177/1474704918812140] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2018] [Accepted: 10/17/2018] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Facial attractiveness plays important roles in social interaction. Electrophysiological and neuroimaging studies found several brain areas to be differentially responsive to attractive relative to unattractive faces. However, little is known about the time course of the information processing, especially under the unattended condition. Based on a "cross-modal delayed response" paradigm, the present study aimed to explore the automatic mechanism of facial attractiveness processing of females with different physiological cycles and males, respectively, through recording the event-related potentials in response to (un)attractive opposite-sex faces by two experiments. The attractiveness-related visual mismatch negativity (attractiveness vMMN) in posterior scalp distribution was recorded in both the experiments, which indicated that attractive faces could be processed automatically. And high-attractive opposite-sex faces can elicit larger vMMN in males than females in menstrual period in Study 1, but similar as females in ovulatory period in Study 2. Furthermore, by comparison, the latency of attractiveness vMMN in females with the ovulatory period was the longest. These results indicated as follows: (1) Males were more sensitive to attractive female faces, (2) females in ovulatory period were also attracted by the attractive male faces, (3) the long vMMN latency in females during ovulatory period suggested a special reproductive motivation to avoid being tainted by genes, which takes priority over the breeding motivation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shu Zhang
- Department of Psychology, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, People’s Republic of China
| | - Hailing Wang
- Department of Psychology, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, People’s Republic of China
| | - Qingke Guo
- Department of Psychology, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, People’s Republic of China
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Carrito ML, Bem-Haja P, Silva CF, Perrett DI, Santos IM. Event-related potentials modulated by the perception of sexual dimorphism: The influence of attractiveness and sex of faces. Biol Psychol 2018; 137:1-11. [PMID: 29913202 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2018.06.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2017] [Revised: 11/17/2017] [Accepted: 06/12/2018] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Sexual dimorphism has been proposed as one of the facial traits to have evolved through sexual selection and to affect attractiveness perception. Even with numerous studies documenting its effect on attractiveness and mate choice, the neurophysiological correlates of the perception of sexual dimorphism are not yet fully understood. In the present study, event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded during visualisation of faces that had been previously transformed in shape to appear more masculine or more feminine. The participants' task consisted of judging the attractiveness of half of the total number of faces, and performing a sex discrimination task on the other half. Both early and late potentials were modulated by the sex of faces, whereas the effect of the sexually dimorphic transform was mainly visible in the P2 (positive deflection around 200 ms after stimulus onset), EPN (early posterior negativity) and LPP (late positive potential) components. There was an effect of sexual dimorphism on P2 and EPN amplitudes when female participants visualised male faces, which may indicate that masculinity is particularly attended to when viewing opposite sex members. Also, ERP results seem to support the idea of sex differences in social categorisation decisions regarding faces, although differences were not evident on behavioural results. In general, these findings contribute to a better understanding of how humans perceive sexually dimorphic characteristics in other individuals' faces and how they affect attractiveness judgements.
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Affiliation(s)
- M L Carrito
- Center for Health Technology and Services Research (CINTESIS), Department of Education and Psychology, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal; ISPA - Instituto Universitário, William James Center for Research, Rua Jardim do Tabaco 34, 1149-041 Lisboa, Portugal; Centre for Psychology at University of Porto, Faculty of Psychology and Education Sciences, University of Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal
| | - P Bem-Haja
- Center for Health Technology and Services Research (CINTESIS), Department of Education and Psychology, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal; Institute for Biomedical Imaging and Life Sciences (IBILI), Faculty of Medicine, University of Coimbra, 3000-548 Coimbra, Portugal
| | - C F Silva
- Center for Health Technology and Services Research (CINTESIS), Department of Education and Psychology, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
| | - D I Perrett
- School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of St Andrews, St Mary's Quad, South Street, St Andrews, Fife, KY16 9JP, Scotland, United Kingdom
| | - I M Santos
- Center for Health Technology and Services Research (CINTESIS), Department of Education and Psychology, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.
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Yamazaki M, Tamura K. The menstrual cycle affects recognition of emotional expressions: an event-related potential study. F1000Res 2017; 6:853. [PMID: 28868136 PMCID: PMC5558101 DOI: 10.12688/f1000research.11563.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/08/2017] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: Several studies have investigated the relationship between behavioral changes and the menstrual cycle in female subjects at a reproductive age. The present study investigated the relationship between the menstrual cycle and emotional face recognition by measuring the N170 component of ERPs. Methods: We measured N170 of twelve women in both follicular phase and late luteal phase who were presented with human facial expressions as stimuli (happy and angry). Results: In the follicular phase, participants showed a significantly larger response to happy male facial expressions. In the late luteal phase, participants had longer reaction times to all emotional stimuli, and a significantly reduced response to happy faces, especially happy male facial expressions (P<0.001). Conclusions: Our findings suggest that the menstrual cycle modulates early visual cognitive processing, and highlight the importance of considering the menstrual cycle phase in studies that investigate emotion and cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Madoka Yamazaki
- Division of Health Science, Daito Bunka University, 560 Iwadono, Higashimatsuyama, Saitama, 355-8501, Japan
| | - Kyoko Tamura
- Division of Health Science, Daito Bunka University, 560 Iwadono, Higashimatsuyama, Saitama, 355-8501, Japan
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30
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Zhang Y, Wei B, Zhao P, Zheng M, Zhang L. Gender differences in memory processing of female facial attractiveness: evidence from event-related potentials. Neurocase 2016; 22:317-23. [PMID: 26928269 DOI: 10.1080/13554794.2016.1151532] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
High rates of agreement in the judgment of facial attractiveness suggest universal principles of beauty. This study investigated gender differences in recognition memory processing of female facial attractiveness. Thirty-four Chinese heterosexual participants (17 females, 17 males) aged 18-24 years (mean age 21.63 ± 1.51 years) participated in the experiment which used event-related potentials (ERPs) based on a study-test paradigm. The behavioral data results showed that both men and women had significantly higher accuracy rates for attractive faces than for unattractive faces, but men reacted faster to unattractive faces. Gender differences on ERPs showed that attractive faces elicited larger early components such as P1, N170, and P2 in men than in women. The results indicated that the effects of recognition bias during memory processing modulated by female facial attractiveness are greater for men than women. Behavioral and ERP evidences indicate that men and women differ in their attentional adhesion to attractive female faces; different mating-related motives may guide the selective processing of attractive men and women. These findings establish a contribution of gender differences on female facial attractiveness during memory processing from an evolutionary perspective.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yan Zhang
- a Academy of Educational Science , Huazhong University of Science and Technology , Wuhan , China.,b School of Educational Science , Mianyang Normal University , Mianyang , China
| | - Bin Wei
- b School of Educational Science , Mianyang Normal University , Mianyang , China
| | - Peiqiong Zhao
- a Academy of Educational Science , Huazhong University of Science and Technology , Wuhan , China
| | - Minxiao Zheng
- a Academy of Educational Science , Huazhong University of Science and Technology , Wuhan , China
| | - Lili Zhang
- a Academy of Educational Science , Huazhong University of Science and Technology , Wuhan , China
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31
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Sun D, Chan CCH, Fan J, Wu Y, Lee TMC. Are Happy Faces Attractive? The Roles of Early vs. Late Processing. Front Psychol 2015; 6:1812. [PMID: 26648885 PMCID: PMC4663264 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01812] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2015] [Accepted: 11/10/2015] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Facial attractiveness is closely related to romantic love. To understand if the neural underpinnings of perceived facial attractiveness and facial expression are similar constructs, we recorded neural signals using an event-related potential (ERP) methodology for 20 participants who were viewing faces with varied attractiveness and expressions. We found that attractiveness and expression were reflected by two early components, P2-lateral (P2l) and P2-medial (P2m), respectively; their interaction effect was reflected by LPP, a late component. The findings suggested that facial attractiveness and expression are first processed in parallel for discrimination between stimuli. After the initial processing, more attentional resources are allocated to the faces with the most positive or most negative valence in both the attractiveness and expression dimensions. The findings contribute to the theoretical model of face perception.
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Affiliation(s)
- Delin Sun
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology, The University of Hong Kong Hong Kong, China
| | - Chetwyn C H Chan
- Applied Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University Hong Kong, China
| | - Jintu Fan
- Department of Fiber Science and Apparel Design, Connell University New York, NY, USA
| | - Yi Wu
- Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University Shanghai, China
| | - Tatia M C Lee
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology, The University of Hong Kong Hong Kong, China ; Institute of Clinical Neuropsychology, The University of Hong Kong Hong Kong, China
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Why do you like Arcimboldo's portraits? Effect of perceptual style on aesthetic appreciation of ambiguous artworks. Atten Percept Psychophys 2015; 76:1516-21. [PMID: 25085737 DOI: 10.3758/s13414-014-0739-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Visual aesthetic experience reflects the states of the mind and the brain when visual artworks are being viewed. In the present study, we investigated whether perceptual style affects the aesthetic appreciation of ambiguous artworks, such as those of Arcimboldo, which are characterized by part-whole ambiguity. Participants were classified as having a global or local perceptual style and were asked to aesthetically judge two different types of artworks: portraits by Arcimboldo and by Renaissance painters. We found that perceptual style affected both the aesthetic appreciation and the degree of perceived ambiguity in Arcimboldo's artworks. Our findings suggest that aesthetic judgment is a consequence of the interaction between individual personal perceptual style and the perceptual features of artworks.
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Hahn AC, Symons LA, Kredel T, Hanson K, Hodgson L, Schiavone L, Jantzen KJ. Early and late event-related potentials are modulated by infant and adult faces of high and low attractiveness. Soc Neurosci 2015; 11:207-20. [PMID: 26160142 DOI: 10.1080/17470919.2015.1059361] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
The processing of infant faces may be somewhat distinct from that of adult faces. Indeed, recent neuroimaging studies have provided evidence of an early, "baby-specific" neural response whereby infant faces are perceived more rapidly than adult faces. Using event-related potentials, the present study aimed to determine whether the preferential response to infant faces is present at both early and late stages of face processing, and to investigate the effects of esthetic appearance on the processing of adult and infant faces by directly manipulating the perceived attractiveness or cuteness within a given face identity. Here, we find evidence for enhanced processing of infant faces, relative to adult faces, at both early (N170, P2) and late (LPC) stages of face processing. We also find that the esthetic appearance of both infant and adult faces modulates early neural responses, with enhanced responses to less attractive/cute faces as compared to more attractive/cute faces. Overall, our results provide additional evidence for a preferential response to infant faces at early stages of processing, and provide new evidence that this preferential response occurs at later stages of face processing as well, independent of the esthetic quality of the face or observer sex.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda C Hahn
- a Institute of Neuroscience & Psychology , University of Glasgow , Glasgow , UK
| | - Lawrence A Symons
- b Department of Psychology , Western Washington University , Bellingham , WA , USA
| | - Taylor Kredel
- b Department of Psychology , Western Washington University , Bellingham , WA , USA
| | - Kevin Hanson
- b Department of Psychology , Western Washington University , Bellingham , WA , USA
| | - Lianne Hodgson
- b Department of Psychology , Western Washington University , Bellingham , WA , USA
| | - Lori Schiavone
- b Department of Psychology , Western Washington University , Bellingham , WA , USA
| | - K J Jantzen
- b Department of Psychology , Western Washington University , Bellingham , WA , USA
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Schnuerch R, Gibbons H. Social proof in the human brain: Electrophysiological signatures of agreement and disagreement with the majority. Psychophysiology 2015; 52:1328-42. [PMID: 26087659 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.12461] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2015] [Accepted: 05/18/2015] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Perceiving one's deviance from the majority usually instigates conformal adjustments of one's own behavior to that of the group. Using ERPs, we investigated the mechanisms by which agreeing and disagreeing with the majority are differentially represented in the human brain and affect subsequent cognitive processing. Replicating previous findings obtained in a slightly different paradigm, we found that learning about one's disagreement with the majority, as compared to learning about one's agreement with the majority, elicited a mediofrontal feedback negativity. Moreover, an enhanced posterior late positive complex was observed during the processing of agreement as compared to disagreement. Finally, when the to-be-judged faces were viewed for a second time, a stronger posterior P2 was observed for faces on whose judgment one had previously agreed with the majority than for those on which one had disagreed. We thus demonstrate that the brain places particular emphasis on the encoding of the rewarding experience of finding strong social proof for one's judgments. Likewise, having experienced agreement on the judgment of a certain item affects even the later reanalysis of this very item, as previous agreement increases early attention, as reflected in the P2. These findings corroborate and extend previous results and theories on the neurocognitive principles of social influence.
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35
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Kong F, Zhang Y, Tian Y, Fan C, Zhou Z. Self-relevant beauty evaluation: Evidence from an event-related potentials study. J Integr Neurosci 2015; 14:85-95. [DOI: 10.1142/s0219635215500028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
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36
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Cheung MC, Law D, Yip J. Evaluating aesthetic experience through personal-appearance styles: a behavioral and electrophysiological study. PLoS One 2015; 9:e115112. [PMID: 25551635 PMCID: PMC4281234 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0115112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2014] [Accepted: 11/18/2014] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Consumers' aesthetic experience has often been linked with the concept of beauty, which is regarded as subjective and may vary between individuals, cultures and places, and across time. With the advent of brain-imaging techniques, there is more and more evidence to suggest that aesthetic experience lies not only in the eye of the beholder, but also in the brain of the beholder. However, there are gaps in the previous research in this area, as several significant issues have not yet been addressed. Specifically, it is unclear whether the human brain really pays more attention and generates more positive emotional responses to beautiful things. To explore the brain activity relating to consumers' aesthetic experiences, 15 participants were recruited voluntarily to view a series of personal-appearance styles. They were invited to make aesthetic judgments while their brain activity was recorded by electroencephalography. Two electroencephalographic (EEG) indicators, theta coherence and frontal alpha symmetry, were utilized. Theta coherence is a measure of linear synchronization between signals at two electrode sites. It reflects the degree of functional cooperation between the underlying neuronal substrates and was used to explore the attentional processing involved in aesthetic judgments. Frontal alpha asymmetry is derived by subtracting the log-transformed absolute alpha power of the left hemisphere from the analogous log-transformed alpha power of the right hemisphere. It was used as an indicator of emotional response. During aesthetic judgments, long-range theta coherence increased in both hemispheres and more positive frontal alpha asymmetry was found when the styles were judged to be beautiful. Therefore, participants demonstrated brain activity suggestive of central executive processing and more positive emotional responses when they considered styles to be beautiful. The study provides some insight into the brain activity associated with consumers' aesthetic experiences, and suggests new directions for exploring consumer behavior from the perspective of neuroscience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mei-chun Cheung
- Department of Social Work, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, New Territories, Hong Kong SAR
- * E-mail:
| | - Derry Law
- Institute of Textiles and Clothing, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR
| | - Joanne Yip
- Institute of Textiles and Clothing, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR
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37
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DENG ZHIDONG, ZHANG ZIMU. EVENT-RELATED COMPLEXITY ANALYSIS AND ITS APPLICATION IN THE DETECTION OF FACIAL ATTRACTIVENESS. Int J Neural Syst 2014; 24:1450026. [DOI: 10.1142/s0129065714500269] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
In this study, an event-related complexity (ERC) analysis method is proposed and used to explore the neural correlates of facial attractiveness detection in the context of a cognitive experiment. The ERC method gives a quantitative index for measuring the diverse brain activation properties that represent the neural correlates of event-related responses. This analysis reveals distinct effects of facial attractiveness processing and also provides further information that could not have been achieved from event-related potential alone.
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Affiliation(s)
- ZHIDONG DENG
- State Key Laboratory of Intelligent Technology and Systems, Tsinghua National Laboratory for Information Science and Technology, Department of Computer Science, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, P. R. China
| | - ZIMU ZHANG
- State Key Laboratory of Intelligent Technology and Systems, Tsinghua National Laboratory for Information Science and Technology, Department of Computer Science, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, P. R. China
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Neural and behavioral responses to attractiveness in adult and infant faces. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2014; 46 Pt 4:591-603. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2014.08.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 91] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2014] [Revised: 07/24/2014] [Accepted: 08/26/2014] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
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39
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Neuroelectrical correlates of trustworthiness and dominance judgments related to the observation of political candidates. COMPUTATIONAL AND MATHEMATICAL METHODS IN MEDICINE 2014; 2014:434296. [PMID: 25214884 PMCID: PMC4158281 DOI: 10.1155/2014/434296] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2014] [Accepted: 07/21/2014] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
The present research investigates the neurophysiological activity elicited by fast observations of faces of real candidates during simulated political elections. We used simultaneous recording of electroencephalographic (EEG) signals as well as galvanic skin response (GSR) and heart rate (HR) as measurements of central and autonomic nervous systems. Twenty healthy subjects were asked to give judgments on dominance, trustworthiness, and a preference of vote related to the politicians' faces. We used high-resolution EEG techniques to map statistical differences of power spectral density (PSD) cortical activity onto a realistic head model as well as partial directed coherence (PDC) and graph theory metrics to estimate the functional connectivity networks and investigate the role of cortical regions of interest (ROIs). Behavioral results revealed that judgment of dominance trait is the most predictive of the outcome of the simulated elections. Statistical comparisons related to PSD and PDC values highlighted an asymmetry in the activation of frontal cortical areas associated with the valence of the judged trait as well as to the probability to cast the vote. Overall, our results highlight the existence of cortical EEG features which are correlated with the prediction of vote and with the judgment of trustworthy and dominant faces.
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