Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 25, 2026

Conscious and Non-conscious Representations of Emotional Faces in Asperger's Syndrome
Published on: July 31, 2016
Preferences for Processing Facial Information at Different Orientations in Individuals With Developmental
Jialin Ma1, Xiaojie Wang1, Rui Zhang2
1Facuty of Education, School of Psychology, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan, China.
Background:
Research has shown that individuals with developmental prosopagnosia (DP) may present a horizontal preference (a preference for horizontal structure) when processing faces. This preference may lead DP individuals to focus on horizontal facial information and ignore other information.
Methods:
Experiment 1 explored whether there was a difference in horizontal preference between the DP group (N = 27) and the control group (N = 47) and whether this preference was based on facial rotation or low-level horizontal (vertical) information. Experiments 2a and 2b used behavioral and eye-movement techniques to explore whether the DP (N = 73) and control groups (N = 58) had preferences for horizontal (vertical) configuration.
Results:
Experiment 1: The results showed that the control group and DP group preferred the horizontal feature information (this preference was not affected by rotation orientation) of faces. Experiments 2a and 2b: The results showed that the DP group had a preference for vertical configuration, while the control group had a preference for horizontal configuration.
Conclusions:
In summary, the control group and the DP group preferred low-level horizontal facial information, and these preferences were not affected by facial rotation orientation. However, regarding spacing configuration, the control group preferred a horizontal configuration, whereas the DP group preferred a vertical configuration. This finding is crucial for elucidating the face preferences in individuals with DP and deepening the comprehension of the associated cognitive-behavioral patterns.
Related Concept Videos
Prosopagnosia
Association Areas of the Cortex
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,...
Visual Agnosia
Parallel Processing
Facial Feedback Hypothesis

