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Sex differences of hemispheric lateralization for faces and Chinese characters in early perceptual processing
Lihong Ji1, Xiaohua Cao2, Baihua Xu3
1Department of Psychology and Behavioral Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310028, China; The Seventh Hospital of Hangzhou, Hangzhou 310028, China.
Neuroscience Letters
|October 30, 2016
Summary
Sex differences emerge in early visual processing. While males show right-lateralized N170 for faces and bilateral for characters, females exhibit bilateral N170 for faces and left-lateralized for characters.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Neuroscience
- Psychology
Background:
- Event-related potential (ERP) studies indicate lateralization of the N170 component for faces (right) and words (left).
- Hemispheric specialization for visual processing may differ between sexes.
- Understanding these differences is crucial for early visual processing research.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate sex differences in hemispheric specialization for face and Chinese character processing.
- To examine the N170 response in early visual processing using a one-back repetition task.
- To explore potential links between face and character lateralization.
Main Methods:
- Utilized event-related potentials (ERPs) and a one-back repetition task.
- Measured N170 amplitude and latency for faces and Chinese characters.
- Analyzed hemispheric lateralization differences between males and females.
Main Results:
- Male N170 for faces was right-lateralized; female N170 was bilateral.
- Male N170 for Chinese characters was bilateral; female N170 was left-lateralized.
- N170 latency for faces differed by sex, but not for Chinese characters.
- Degree of lateralization for faces and characters was correlated in both sexes.
Conclusions:
- Sex differences in N170 hemispheric lateralization exist for both faces and Chinese characters.
- The patterns of lateralization for faces and characters are distinct between sexes.
- Early perceptual processing of faces and Chinese characters shows interconnectedness in lateralization, varying by sex.
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