异族面孔分类中情绪的调节作用

人们对异族面孔的分类绩效比本族面孔更好,这称作异族分类优势.但面孔异族分类优势是否也和面孔异族效应一样受到情绪的调节作用,尚未可知.本文通过两个实验考察情绪对于面孔种族分类任务的影响.实验一要求40名大学生被试对不同表情面孔(中性,负性,正性)完成种族判断任务,结果发现,正性和负性情绪使年轻人对异族面孔分类变得更慢,削弱了面孔异族分类优势,而且正性情绪对异族分类效应影响更大.实验二以不同情绪加工特点的老年人为被试,发现老年人对负性异族面孔的分类绩效明显更差,负性情绪对异族分类优势的影响更大.这些结果为异族分类优势理论中,异族面孔分类和个体身份加工过程相互制约的潜在假设提供了进一步的支持.     

年龄相关的情绪偏向效应的时间进程

来自记忆、注意和决策等领域的大量研究发现,在加工情绪刺激时老年人具有正性情绪偏向或负性情绪规避的特点.本研究采用oddball变式,将情绪面孔图片作为分心刺激呈现.实验过程中记录被试脑电,考察不同情绪效价对脑电波的影响,同时考察老年人在非任务相关条件下情绪加工和情绪调节的时间进程.研究发现,在相对早期时间窗口(270~460 ms),年轻组脑电不受情绪效价影响,而老年组中悲伤情绪面孔较之快乐和中性情绪面孔引发了一个更大的正成分(P3a).在晚期时间窗口(500~850 ms),年轻组中悲伤情绪面孔吸引了被试更多注意并引发了一个更大的正性慢波.相反,老年组在晚期加工阶段,情绪效价效应消失.研究揭示了老年人和年轻人在加工非任务相关的情绪刺激时存在的时间进程差异,年龄相关的正性情绪效应发生在晚期时间窗口,表现为年轻组的负性情绪偏向和老年组的无情绪偏向.研究结果为社会情绪选择理论提供了来自脑电数据的支持.     

年龄相关的情绪偏向效应的时间进程（英文）

来自记忆、注意和决策等领域的大量研究发现,在加工情绪刺激时老年人具有正性情绪偏向或负性情绪规避的特点.本研究采用oddball变式,将情绪面孔图片作为分心刺激呈现.实验过程中记录被试脑电,考察不同情绪效价对脑电波的影响,同时考察老年人在非任务相关条件下情绪加工和情绪调节的时间进程.研究发现,在相对早期时间窗口(270~460 ms),年轻组脑电不受情绪效价影响,而老年组中悲伤情绪面孔较之快乐和中性情绪面孔引发了一个更大的正成分(P3a).在晚期时间窗口(500~850 ms),年轻组中悲伤情绪面孔吸引了被试更多注意并引发了一个更大的正性慢波.相反,老年组在晚期加工阶段,情绪效价效应消失.研究揭示了老年人和年轻人在加工非任务相关的情绪刺激时存在的时间进程差异,年龄相关的正性情绪效应发生在晚期时间窗口,表现为年轻组的负性情绪偏向和老年组的无情绪偏向.研究结果为社会情绪选择理论提供了来自脑电数据的支持.     

情绪预期影响人类对恐惧面孔的敏感性——来自电生理的证据

采用事件相关电位技术,本研究考察了情绪预期对人类恐惧面孔敏感性的影响．实验记录了被试在线索提示条件及无线索提示条件下对恐惧和中性面孔进行性别判断时的ERP数据．行为结果显示,不可预期条件下被试对恐惧面孔性别判断的正确率显著低于对中性面孔的正确率,表明不可预期的恐惧情绪对实验任务产生了显著地干扰效应．ERP数据显示,在不可预期条件下,在P2及200～250ms区间,恐惧面孔比中性面孔诱发了更大的波幅,情绪效应显著;而可预期条件下,人脑对恐惧面孔和中性面孔的反应类似,表现出情绪效应的显著降低．因此,人类情绪加工的负性偏向效应受个体情绪预期的调节．人类对不可预期的负性情绪敏感,相反当恐惧情绪的发生可以被提前预期时,个体对它们的神经敏感性降低．     

孤独症谱系障碍患者的面部表情敏感性缺陷:任务性质的影响与干预启示

大量研究指出,孤独症谱系障碍(ASD)患者存在面部表情识别和理解的缺陷,这是患者社会功能受损的核心来源.对面孔表情具有情绪敏感性是理解与识别表情的先决条件,但ASD患者对面部表情的情绪敏感性迄今尚未得到系统分析.本文将ASD与面部表情知觉的相关研究按照实验任务类型进行了分类,发现该领域研究可划分为3种任务类型:外显表情观察任务、引导注视点观察任务和内隐表情观察任务.由此重点对比了ASD患者在3种任务类型下的行为,外周生理反应与脑激活模式.结果发现,ASD患者对面孔表情的情绪敏感性缺陷主要体现在外显表情观察与引导注视点观察任务中.相比上述两种要求被试有意注意面孔表情特征的任务,ASD患者在内隐表情观察任务中能对面部表情表现出与正常被试相似或更大的注意偏向及杏仁核激活.这提示ASD患者并非完全缺乏对面部表情的情绪敏感性;而很可能是在有意注意表情的条件下,该群体的面孔适应困难使之产生了对面孔情绪特征的回避,故无法有效激活以杏仁核为核心的情感神经环路.据此,本文提出了对ASD患者的表情敏感性缺陷的干预设想,即通过无意识地、内隐地训练ASD患者维持对面孔情绪特征的注意很可能会改善其表情敏感性和面孔适应能力,这种方式对于ASD的临床干预和社会能力的提高或将具有重要意义.     

负性情绪对不同视野条件下工作记忆的影响

目的:研究结合延迟样本匹配任务和分视野范式,探讨负性情绪对言语和空间工作记忆的影响。方法:32名大学本科生参加实验,在中性和负性情绪图片呈现阶段,所有被试完成言语和空间工作记忆任务各160个trial。结果:言语工作记忆任务在右视野呈现时正确率较高,反应时较短,而空间工作记忆任务则在左视野呈现时表现出相似的反应优势;负性情绪状态下的工作记忆表现均优于中性情绪状态。结论:言语及空间工作记忆分别具有左、右半球的加工优势,且负性情绪对工作记忆具有促进作用。     

奖赏动机对情绪调节的影响

奖赏对行为的影响是当前心理学研究的热点之一,奖赏诱发的动机能够提升被试的行为表现。以往研究较多关注奖赏对情绪信息加工的影响,还没有研究者直接探讨奖赏对情绪调节的影响。本研究着重探讨在奖赏作用下,被试的情绪调节能力是否有所改善。实验一和实验二分别研究奖赏对负性情绪下调和正性情绪上调的影响。实验一在经典情绪调节范式基础上引入金钱奖赏刺激,要求被试在有、无金钱奖赏条件下进行负性情绪的下调,并对调节后的情绪状态进行评定。与实验一类似,实验二要求被试在有、无奖赏条件下进行正性情绪的上调。结果显示:相比于无金钱奖赏条件,金钱奖赏条件下的被试能够更好地调节自己的情绪,即被试会有更低的负性情绪体验和更高的正性情绪体验。值得注意的是,实验一和二的结果可能是由金钱刺激诱发的奖赏动机所致,也有可能是由于金钱本身包含的积极价值引起的积极情绪所致。因此继续开展实验三和实验四,探讨金钱本身诱发的积极情绪是否对个体的情绪调节产生影响。实验三采用金钱图片诱发被试的积极情绪,要求被试在有、无金钱图片呈现后进行负性情绪的下调,并对调节后的情绪状态进行评定。同样地,实验四要求被试在有、无金钱图片呈现后进行正性情绪的上调。结果表明,被试在有、无金钱图片呈现后进行情绪愉悦度评定得分并无显著差异。实验三和四的结果排除了单纯的金钱刺激图片诱发的积极情绪促进被试情绪调节能力提升的可能性。综上所述,本研究中个体情绪调节能力的提升的确是受奖赏动机所驱动,即奖赏所诱发的动机能够有效地促进个体的情绪调节。     

负性情绪加工与体验以相反方式影响冲突适应

情绪和认知控制的相互影响塑造着我们的行为.冲突适应反映了认知控制的两个关键加工(监测冲突和控制冲突),因此调查情绪对冲突适应的影响有助于说明情绪与认知控制相互作用的基本机制.不过,已有研究在负性情绪如何影响冲突适应的问题得到了矛盾的结果:有研究发现负性情绪抑制了冲突适应;有研究发现负性情绪易化了冲突适应.值得注意的是,在冲突适应受到抑制的研究中,负性情绪是通过在认知任务中插入图片临时诱发的,而在冲突适应受到易化的研究中,负性情绪是在实验前诱发并在实验中持续存在的.据此推测,抑制冲突适应的负性情绪带有更多情绪加工的成分,而易化冲突适应的负性情绪带有更多的情绪体验成分.本研究采用插入情绪图片来诱发负性情绪,但将情绪诱发分为早期组块(此时被试对情绪材料没有形成习惯化反应,情绪加工占主导地位)和晚期组块(此时被试对情绪材料已经形成习惯化反应,情绪体验占主导地位)进行分析.与本课题组的预期相符,早期组块中冲突适应受到抑制,晚期组块中冲突适应受到易化.因此,本研究解决了已有研究间的分歧,说明冲突适应之所以受到抑制是因为受到负性情绪加工的影响,而冲突适应之所以受到易化是因为受到负性情绪体验的影响.本课题组进一步提出,负性情绪加工可能是通过占用认知资源抑制冲突适应的,而负性情绪体验可能是通过提升警觉水平而易化冲突适应的.本研究也凸显了任务配置在冲突适应中的重要性,加深了对冲突适应产生机制的理解.     

负性情绪与认知执行功能的关系研究

目的:对负性情绪组和正常对照组被试进行认知执行功能测定,探讨负性情绪患者的认知执行功能特征,为临床诊断治疗提供参考.方法:通过贝克抑郁量表和贝克焦虑量表测查被试的抑郁和焦虑程度,并运用认知调控测试、Stroop测试和语词流畅性测试研究所有被试的认知执行功能,比较高负性情绪组和低负性情绪组的认知执行功能特征.结果:(1)低负性情绪组比高负性情绪组在完成AST测验大多数任务操作上速度更快(P＜0.05),错误数更少,且抑郁情绪症状和焦虑情绪症状与完成AST测验所需时间的相关性分别在0.01和0.05的水平上显著;(2)低抑郁组比高抑郁组在完成Stroop任务操作上速度更快(P＜0.01),且难度越大,低负性情绪组与高负性情绪组的成绩差异越明显;(3)低负性情绪组与高负性情绪组在完成VF测验中,除了低焦虑组在正确率指标上不如高焦虑组外,其他成绩都优于高负性情绪组.结论:高负性情绪者的认知执行功能受到不同程度的损伤,任务难度越大,其认知执行功能受损表现越明显.     

内侧额叶负波受负性情绪下责任感影响：最后通牒任务的ERP研究

采用事件相关电位技术探讨人脑的内侧额叶负波在最后通牒任务中是否受不同情绪状态的影响并且其差异是否与责任感这一人格特质有关.结果发现,相对于负性情绪及公平情境,MFN的波幅在正性情绪和不公平情境中显著较大;相对于正性情绪和公平情境,在负性情绪和不公平情境中责任感人格维度得分越高,MFN波幅越正.结果表明,MFN反映的是对决策情境的认知评价且正性情绪更有利于对决策情境的觉知;责任感通过削弱由不利情境带来的认知反应来压制个体对于决策情境的敏感性,以追求更好的决策结果.这为MFN在真实的社会互动任务中表现出来的差异提供了具有较高生态学效度的神经电理学证据.     

On the Other Side of the Fence: Effects of Social Categorization and Spatial Grouping on Memory and Attention for Own-Race and Other-Race Faces

The term “own-race bias” refers to the phenomenon that humans are typically better at recognizing faces from their own than a different race. The perceptual expertise account assumes that our face perception system has adapted to the faces we are typically exposed to, equipping it poorly for the processing of other-race faces. Sociocognitive theories assume that other-race faces are initially categorized as out-group, decreasing motivation to individuate them. Supporting sociocognitive accounts, a recent study has reported improved recognition for other-race faces when these were categorized as belonging to the participants'' in-group on a second social dimension, i.e., their university affiliation. Faces were studied in groups, containing both own-race and other-race faces, half of each labeled as in-group and out-group, respectively. When study faces were spatially grouped by race, participants showed a clear own-race bias. When faces were grouped by university affiliation, recognition of other-race faces from the social in-group was indistinguishable from own-race face recognition. The present study aimed at extending this singular finding to other races of faces and participants. Forty Asian and 40 European Australian participants studied Asian and European faces for a recognition test. Faces were presented in groups, containing an equal number of own-university and other-university Asian and European faces. Between participants, faces were grouped either according to race or university affiliation. Eye tracking was used to study the distribution of spatial attention to individual faces in the display. The race of the study faces significantly affected participants'' memory, with better recognition of own-race than other-race faces. However, memory was unaffected by the university affiliation of the faces and by the criterion for their spatial grouping on the display. Eye tracking revealed strong looking biases towards both own-race and own-university faces. Results are discussed in light of the theoretical accounts of the own-race bias.     

Looking the part: social status cues shape race perception

It is commonly believed that race is perceived through another's facial features, such as skin color. In the present research, we demonstrate that cues to social status that often surround a face systematically change the perception of its race. Participants categorized the race of faces that varied along White-Black morph continua and that were presented with high-status or low-status attire. Low-status attire increased the likelihood of categorization as Black, whereas high-status attire increased the likelihood of categorization as White; and this influence grew stronger as race became more ambiguous (Experiment 1). When faces with high-status attire were categorized as Black or faces with low-status attire were categorized as White, participants' hand movements nevertheless revealed a simultaneous attraction to select the other race-category response (stereotypically tied to the status cue) before arriving at a final categorization. Further, this attraction effect grew as race became more ambiguous (Experiment 2). Computational simulations then demonstrated that these effects may be accounted for by a neurally plausible person categorization system, in which contextual cues come to trigger stereotypes that in turn influence race perception. Together, the findings show how stereotypes interact with physical cues to shape person categorization, and suggest that social and contextual factors guide the perception of race.     

Sequential Effects in Judgements of Attractiveness: The Influences of Face Race and Sex

In perceptual decision-making, a person’s response on a given trial is influenced by their response on the immediately preceding trial. This sequential effect was initially demonstrated in psychophysical tasks, but has now been found in more complex, real-world judgements. The similarity of the current and previous stimuli determines the nature of the effect, with more similar items producing assimilation in judgements, while less similarity can cause a contrast effect. Previous research found assimilation in ratings of facial attractiveness, and here, we investigated whether this effect is influenced by the social categories of the faces presented. Over three experiments, participants rated the attractiveness of own- (White) and other-race (Chinese) faces of both sexes that appeared successively. Through blocking trials by race (Experiment 1), sex (Experiment 2), or both dimensions (Experiment 3), we could examine how sequential judgements were altered by the salience of different social categories in face sequences. For sequences that varied in sex alone, own-race faces showed significantly less opposite-sex assimilation (male and female faces perceived as dissimilar), while other-race faces showed equal assimilation for opposite- and same-sex sequences (male and female faces were not differentiated). For sequences that varied in race alone, categorisation by race resulted in no opposite-race assimilation for either sex of face (White and Chinese faces perceived as dissimilar). For sequences that varied in both race and sex, same-category assimilation was significantly greater than opposite-category. Our results suggest that the race of a face represents a superordinate category relative to sex. These findings demonstrate the importance of social categories when considering sequential judgements of faces, and also highlight a novel approach for investigating how multiple social dimensions interact during decision-making.     

The Effects of Prediction on the Perception for Own-Race and Other-Race Faces

Human beings do not passively perceive important social features about others such as race and age in social interactions. Instead, it is proposed that humans might continuously generate predictions about these social features based on prior similar experiences. Pre-awareness of racial information conveyed by others'' faces enables individuals to act in “culturally appropriate” ways, which is useful for interpersonal relations in different ethnicity groups. However, little is known about the effects of prediction on the perception for own-race and other-race faces. Here, we addressed this issue using high temporal resolution event-related potential techniques. In total, data from 24 participants (13 women and 11 men) were analyzed. It was found that the N170 amplitudes elicited by other-race faces, but not own-race faces, were significantly smaller in the predictable condition compared to the unpredictable condition, reflecting a switch to holistic processing of other-race faces when those faces were predictable. In this respect, top-down prediction about face race might contribute to the elimination of the other-race effect (one face recognition impairment). Furthermore, smaller P300 amplitudes were observed for the predictable than for unpredictable conditions, which suggested that the prediction of race reduced the neural responses of human brains.     

How Well Do Computer-Generated Faces Tap Face Expertise?

The use of computer-generated (CG) stimuli in face processing research is proliferating due to the ease with which faces can be generated, standardised and manipulated. However there has been surprisingly little research into whether CG faces are processed in the same way as photographs of real faces. The present study assessed how well CG faces tap face identity expertise by investigating whether two indicators of face expertise are reduced for CG faces when compared to face photographs. These indicators were accuracy for identification of own-race faces and the other-race effect (ORE)–the well-established finding that own-race faces are recognised more accurately than other-race faces. In Experiment 1 Caucasian and Asian participants completed a recognition memory task for own- and other-race real and CG faces. Overall accuracy for own-race faces was dramatically reduced for CG compared to real faces and the ORE was significantly and substantially attenuated for CG faces. Experiment 2 investigated perceptual discrimination for own- and other-race real and CG faces with Caucasian and Asian participants. Here again, accuracy for own-race faces was significantly reduced for CG compared to real faces. However the ORE was not affected by format. Together these results signal that CG faces of the type tested here do not fully tap face expertise. Technological advancement may, in the future, produce CG faces that are equivalent to real photographs. Until then caution is advised when interpreting results obtained using CG faces.     

Caucasian infants scan own- and other-race faces differently

Young infants are known to prefer own-race faces to other race faces and recognize own-race faces better than other-race faces. However, it is entirely unclear as to whether infants also attend to different parts of own- and other-race faces differently, which may provide an important clue as to how and why the own-race face recognition advantage emerges so early. The present study used eye tracking methodology to investigate whether 6- to 10-month-old Caucasian infants (N = 37) have differential scanning patterns for dynamically displayed own- and other-race faces. We found that even though infants spent a similar amount of time looking at own- and other-race faces, with increased age, infants increasingly looked longer at the eyes of own-race faces and less at the mouths of own-race faces. These findings suggest experience-based tuning of the infant''s face processing system to optimally process own-race faces that are different in physiognomy from other-race faces. In addition, the present results, taken together with recent own- and other-race eye tracking findings with infants and adults, provide strong support for an enculturation hypothesis that East Asians and Westerners may be socialized to scan faces differently due to each culture''s conventions regarding mutual gaze during interpersonal communication.     

Race Guides Attention in Visual Search

It is known that faces are rapidly and even unconsciously categorized into social groups (black vs. white, male vs. female). Here, I test whether preferences for specific social groups guide attention, using a visual search paradigm. In Experiment 1 participants searched displays of neutral faces for an angry or frightened target face. Black target faces were detected more efficiently than white targets, indicating that black faces attracted more attention. Experiment 2 showed that attention differences between black and white faces were correlated with individual differences in automatic race preference. In Experiment 3, using happy target faces, the attentional preference for black over white faces was eliminated. Taken together, these results suggest that automatic preferences for social groups guide attention to individuals from negatively valenced groups, when people are searching for a negative emotion such as anger or fear.     

Own-Race Faces Capture Attention Faster than Other-Race Faces: Evidence from Response Time and the N2pc

Studies have shown that people are better at recognizing human faces from their own-race than from other-races, an effect often termed the Own-Race Advantage. The current study investigates whether there is an Own-Race Advantage in attention and its neural correlates. Participants were asked to search for a human face among animal faces. Experiment 1 showed a classic Own-Race Advantage in response time both for Chinese and Black South African participants. Using event-related potentials (ERPs), Experiment 2 showed a similar Own-Race Advantage in response time for both upright faces and inverted faces. Moreover, the latency of N2pc for own-race faces was earlier than that for other-race faces. These results suggested that own-race faces capture attention more efficiently than other-race faces.     

Is the self always better than a friend? Self-face recognition in Christians and atheists

Early behavioral studies found that human adults responded faster to their own faces than faces of familiar others or strangers, a finding referred to as self-face advantage. Recent research suggests that the self-face advantage is mediated by implicit positive association with the self and is influenced by sociocultural experience. The current study investigated whether and how Christian belief and practice affect the processing of self-face in a Chinese population. Christian and Atheist participants were recruited for an implicit association test (IAT) in Experiment 1 and a face-owner identification task in Experiment 2. Experiment 1 found that atheists responded faster to self-face when it shared the same response key with positive compared to negative trait adjectives. This IAT effect, however, was significantly reduced in Christians. Experiment 2 found that atheists responded faster to self-face compared to a friend's face, but this self-face advantage was significantly reduced in Christians. Hierarchical regression analyses further showed that the IAT effect positively predicted self-face advantage in atheists but not in Christians. Our findings suggest that Christian belief and practice may weaken implicit positive association with the self and thus decrease the advantage of the self over a friend during face recognition in the believers.     

Attentional Prioritization of Infant Faces Is Limited to Own-Race Infants

Background

Recent evidence indicates that infant faces capture attention automatically, presumably to elicit caregiving behavior from adults and leading to greater probability of progeny survival. Elsewhere, evidence demonstrates that people show deficiencies in the processing of other-race relative to own-race faces. We ask whether this other-race effect impacts on attentional attraction to infant faces. Using a dot-probe task to reveal the spatial allocation of attention, we investigate whether other-race infants capture attention.

Principal Findings

South Asian and White participants (young adults aged 18–23 years) responded to a probe shape appearing in a location previously occupied by either an infant face or an adult face; across trials, the race (South Asian/White) of the faces was manipulated. Results indicated that participants were faster to respond to probes that appeared in the same location as infant faces than adult faces, but only on own-race trials.

Conclusions/Significance

Own-race infant faces attract attention, but other-race infant faces do not. Sensitivity to face-specific care-seeking cues in other-race kindenschema may be constrained by interracial contact and experience.