Neuropsychology of facial expressions. The role of consciousness in processing emotional faces
Neuropsychological Trends April 1, 2012 DOI: 10.7358/neur-2012-011-balc (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Review Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key findings | The authors propose that distinct brain circuits underlie emotional face processing as a function of conscious versus unconscious processing, that emotional content (positive versus negative, arousal level) engages specific cortical networks, and that hemispheric contributions differ by emotion type and task (comprehending versus producing expressions). ERP and brain oscillation findings are presented as evidence for how faces are processed with and without awareness. |
Abstract
Neuropsychological studies have underlined the significant presence of distinct brain correlates deputed to analyze facial expression of emotion. It was observed that some cerebral circuits were considered as specific for emotional face comprehension as a function of conscious vs. unconscious processing of emotional information. Moreover, the emotional content of faces (i.e. positive vs. negative; more or less arousing) may have an effect in activating specific cortical networks. Between the others, recent studies have explained the contribution of hemispheres in comprehending face, as a function of type of emotions (mainly related to the distinction positive vs. negative) and of specific tasks (comprehending vs. producing facial expressions). Specifically, ERPs (event-related potentials) analysis overview is proposed in order to comprehend how face may be processed by an observer and how he can make face a meaningful construct even in absence of awareness. Finally, brain oscillations is considered in order to explain the synchronization of neural populations in response to emotional faces when a conscious vs. unconscious processing is activated.