Face-likeness affects Unconscious Processing
Press Releases | October 28, 2024
Extent of the Facial Ambiguity and Facial Perception
Our brains possess a cognitive mechanism that allows us to quickly recognize faces even with limited visual information. Focusing on this phenomenon, Toyohashi University of Technology investigated how the brain processes ambiguous visual stimuli resembling faces under unconscious conditions. The research team from the Visual Perception and Cognition Laboratory and the Cognitive Neuroengineering Laboratory in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering investigated, utilized a technique called Continuous Flash Suppression (CFS). This method involves rapidly presenting images to one eye to suppress the visual information of the other eye, enabling the study of processing mechanisms for ambiguous images under unconscious conditions. The research revealed that even ambiguous black-and-white stimuli reach consciousness more quickly when they resemble faces. This suggests that the brain responds rapidly even when facial cues are minimal.
These findings were published online in the Journal of Vision on September 27, 2024. https://doi.org/10.1167/jov.24.9.18
