Social Neuroscience

The Cortical Basis of Face Recognition

Questions:

1. What parts of the brain are involved in recognizing faces?

2. Are these parts specialized only for face recognition, or are they also involved in recognition of other objects?

I. Brief summary of what is known about what different parts of the brain do

A. Left hemisphere involvement in language

1) Lesion studies

2) Split-brain studies

3) Tachistoscopic and dichotic listening studies of normals

B. Right hemisphere involvement in visuo-spatial functions

1) Lesion studies

2) Split-brain studies

3) Tachistoscopic and dichotic listening studies of normals

II. Specific focus on face processing

A. Lesion studies – prosopagnosia

B. Split-brain studies

C. Tachistoscopic and chimeric studies of normals

D. Neuroimaging studies of normals – fusiform face area

E. Important unresolved issues

1) are faces different from all other visual stimuli?

a. upright versus inverted faces

b. effects of familiarity

2) are facial expression and emotion processed separately from face recognition?

a. lesions studies: double dissociation

b. tachistoscopic and chimeric studies of normal subjects

III. Conclusions

A. Summary of what’s known about the cortical basis of face recognition

B. How does cortical basis of face recognition relate to other visuo-spatial functions?

C. Topics that need further study