Neural and cognitive face-selective markers: An integrative review

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Cognitive Psychology
• Vision Science

Background:

• The primate brain exhibits specialized neural responses to faces.
• Functional MRI (fMRI) and electroencephalography (EEG) studies have identified face-selective activations in the occipital-temporal cortex.
• Electrophysiological studies show a face-selective response peaking at 170 ms.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the association between neural face-selective responses (fMRI and EEG) and established cognitive measures.
• To explore the relationship between fMRI and EEG measures of face processing.
• To characterize the neural mechanisms of face representation within the first 200 ms.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing functional MRI (fMRI) and electroencephalography (EEG) studies.
• Analysis of cognitive studies investigating the face inversion effect, composite face effect, and left visual field (LVF) superiority.
• Synthesis of data linking neural and behavioral face-selective measures.

Main Results:

• fMRI and EEG face-selective responses are strongly correlated with behavioral measures like the face inversion effect.
• fMRI and EEG measures of face processing are highly interconnected.
• A holistic face representation is formed approximately 170 ms after stimulus onset, predominantly over the right hemisphere.

Conclusions:

• There is a robust link between cognitive and neural measures of face processing.
• The findings elucidate the temporal and spatial dynamics of face representation in the brain.
• This review integrates diverse evidence to characterize early face processing mechanisms.