title: Fixation location on upright and inverted faces modulates the N170.
abstract: The current study used event-related potentials (ERP) in combination with a variable viewing position paradigm (VVPP) to direct fixations to specific face parts (eyes or mouths) in upright or inverted whole faces. The N170 elicited by the VVPP was greater to faces than to non-face objects (wristwatches), and was delayed and enhanced in response to face inversion. A larger N170 response was elicited when the participants׳ fixation was directed to the eyes than when directed to the mouths of both upright and inverted faces, an effect that was also modulated by the spatial location of the face in the visual field. The N170 face inversion effect (upright minus inverted) was greater when fixations were directed to the mouth than when directed to the eyes, suggesting that the point of fixation within a face modulates brain potentials due to contributions from the features themselves, as well as their relative location in the visual field.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cognitive Science, ARC Centre for Cognition and its Disorders, Macquarie University, NSW 2109, Australia. Electronic address: peter.delissa@mq.edu.au.
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: de Lissa
authors.affiliation: Department of Cognitive Science, ARC Centre for Cognition and its Disorders, Macquarie University, NSW 2109, Australia.
authors.forename: Genevieve
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: McArthur
authors.affiliation: Centre for Neurocognitive Research & Department of Psychology, University of Salzburg, Hellbrunnerstr. 34 A-5020, Salzburg, Austria.
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hawelka
authors.affiliation: School of Psychology, and ARC Centre for Cognition and its Disorders, University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia.
authors.forename: Romina
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Palermo
authors.affiliation: Department of Cognitive Science, ARC Centre for Cognition and its Disorders, Macquarie University, NSW 2109, Australia; MARCS Institute, University of Western Sydney, Penrith, NSW 2751, Australia.
authors.forename: Yatin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Mahajan
authors.affiliation: Centre for Neurocognitive Research & Department of Psychology, University of Salzburg, Hellbrunnerstr. 34 A-5020, Salzburg, Austria.
authors.forename: Florian
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Hutzler
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology*; D001931:Brain Mapping; D004569:Electroencephalography; D005071:Evoked Potentials / Q000502:physiology*; D005145:Face; D005260:Female; D005403:Fixation, Ocular / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual / Q000502:physiology*; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Eyes; Face; Fixation; Inversion; N170; Perception