Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Association Areas of the Cortex01:21

Association Areas of the Cortex

Association areas are regions of the cerebral cortex that do not have a specific sensory or motor function. Instead, they integrate and interpret information from various sources to enable higher cognitive processes such as memory, learning, and decision-making. Some key association areas include the following:
Prefrontal Association Area: This area is located in the frontal lobe and is involved in planning, decision-making, and moderating social behavior. It connects with primary motor areas,...
Anatomical Positions01:11

Anatomical Positions

In anatomy, several standard anatomical positions are used as references for describing the position and orientation of different body parts. These positions help provide a common frame of reference when discussing anatomical structures. The anatomical position is the standard reference point for describing the body's position and orientation. In this position:
The body is upright, facing forward, and standing erect.
The feet are parallel and flat on the floor.
The arms are hanging by the...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Category specificity in holistic processing: Reciprocal face-word interference does not extend to body stimuli.

Attention, perception & psychophysics·2026
Same author

Comparability between AI and human cognition and its role in psychological research and AI ethics.

British journal of psychology (London, England : 1953)·2026
Same author

Eye metrics often reflect visual conscious awareness, conscious content, and neural processing in cerebral blindness.

Communications biology·2025
Same author

Using eye movements, electrodermal activities, and heart rates to predict different types of cognitive load during reading with background music.

Scientific reports·2025
Same author

Cross-sectional and longitudinal changes in category selectivity in visual cortex following pediatric cortical resection.

Communications biology·2025
Same author

Understanding the role of eye movement pattern and consistency during face recognition through EEG decoding.

NPJ science of learning·2025
Same journal

Analysis of human visual experience data.

Journal of vision·2026
Same journal

Pyramid-based Bayesian modeling for high-resolution behavioral analysis.

Journal of vision·2026
Same journal

Sensation without perception: The white whale effect and perceptual blindness in autonomous vehicles.

Journal of vision·2026
Same journal

Gaze behavior during closed-captioned movie viewing adapts to absent audio through more frequent switching between text and scene.

Journal of vision·2026
Same journal

In pursuit of saccade awareness: Limited volitional control and minimal conscious access to catch-up saccades during smooth pursuit eye movements.

Journal of vision·2026
Same journal

Dissociable effects of element-lifetime and stimulus-duration on local and global motion processing: An equivalent noise study.

Journal of vision·2026
See all related articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 24, 2026

A Methodology for Capturing Joint Visual Attention Using Mobile Eye-Trackers
12:39

A Methodology for Capturing Joint Visual Attention Using Mobile Eye-Trackers

Published on: January 18, 2020

The optimal viewing position in face recognition.

Janet H Hsiao1, Tina T Liu

  • 1Department of Psychology, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong. jhsiao@hku.hk

Journal of Vision
|March 1, 2012
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

The optimal viewing position (OVP) for face recognition is to the left of center, indicating perceptual experience outweighs brain hemisphere specialization. This differs from word recognition, where both factors align for a left bias.

More Related Videos

Clinical Anthropometrics and Body Composition from 3-Dimensional Optical Imaging
06:48

Clinical Anthropometrics and Body Composition from 3-Dimensional Optical Imaging

Published on: June 7, 2024

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 24, 2026

A Methodology for Capturing Joint Visual Attention Using Mobile Eye-Trackers
12:39

A Methodology for Capturing Joint Visual Attention Using Mobile Eye-Trackers

Published on: January 18, 2020

Clinical Anthropometrics and Body Composition from 3-Dimensional Optical Imaging
06:48

Clinical Anthropometrics and Body Composition from 3-Dimensional Optical Imaging

Published on: June 7, 2024

Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Neuroscience
  • Visual Perception

Background:

  • Optimal viewing position (OVP) in word recognition is typically left of center.
  • This left bias is attributed to language processing lateralization in the left hemisphere and frequent fixation on word beginnings.
  • Face recognition presents conflicting predictions for OVP due to right hemisphere specialization versus left-sided facial feature preference.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the optimal viewing position (OVP) for face recognition.
  • To determine the relative influence of perceptual experience and hemispheric lateralization on face OVP.
  • To examine how visual field (central vs. peripheral) affects OVP in face perception.

Main Methods:

  • Participants performed a face recognition task.
  • The initial fixation position (OVP) was measured.
  • Faces were presented centrally and peripherally, varying the visual field.

Main Results:

  • The OVP for central face recognition was found to be to the left of center.
  • Perceptual experience, favoring left-sided viewing, appeared to dominate over right hemisphere specialization for central face processing.
  • Hemispheric lateralization effects became apparent in peripheral vision, interacting with location.

Conclusions:

  • Perceptual experience significantly influences the optimal viewing position in central face recognition.
  • Hemispheric lateralization plays a more prominent role in peripheral face perception.
  • There is a differential interplay between perceptual factors and brain asymmetry in central versus peripheral vision.