Psychophysical thresholds of face visibility during infancy.
The ability to detect and focus on faces is a fundamental prerequisite for developing social skills. But how well can infants detect faces? Here, we address this question by studying the minimum duration at which faces must appear to trigger a behavioral response in infants. We used a preferential looking method in conjunction with masking and brief presentations (300 ms and below) to establish the temporal thresholds of visibility at different stages of development. We found that 5 and 10 month-old infants have remarkably similar visibility thresholds about three times higher than those of adults. By contrast, 15 month-olds not only revealed adult-like thresholds, but also improved their performance through memory-based strategies. Our results imply that the development of face visibility follows a non-linear course and is determined by a radical improvement occurring between 10 and 15 months.
Gelskov
Sofie V
SV
Laboratoire de Sciences Cognitives et Psycholinguistique, CNRS/EHESS/ENS-DEC, Paris, France.
Kouider
Sid
S
D000328:Adult; D000375:Aging / Q000523:psychology; D003627:Data Interpretation, Statistical; D005145:Face; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D018730:Infant Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D008297:Male; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D012684:Sensory Thresholds; D012938:Social Perception; D014796:Visual Perception / Q000502:physiology*