Distinct spatial scale sensitivities for early categorization of faces and places: neuromagnetic and behavioral findings

Awasthi, B., Sowman, P. F., Friedman, J. and Williams, M. A. (2013) Distinct spatial scale sensitivities for early categorization of faces and places: neuromagnetic and behavioral findings. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 7, 91. (doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2013.00091) (PMID:23519842) (PMCID:PMC3604654)

Abstract

Research exploring the role of spatial frequencies in rapid stimulus detection and categorization report flexible reliance on specific spatial frequency (SF) bands. Here, through a set of behavioral and magnetoencephalography (MEG) experiments, we investigated the role of low spatial frequency (LSF) (<8 cycles/face) and high spatial frequency (HSF) (>25 cycles/face) information during the categorization of faces and places. Reaction time measures revealed significantly faster categorization of faces driven by LSF information, while rapid categorization of places was facilitated by HSF information. The MEG study showed significantly earlier latency of the M170 component for LSF faces compared to HSF faces. Moreover, the M170 amplitude was larger for LSF faces than for LSF places, whereas the reverse pattern was evident for HSF faces and places. These results suggest that SF modulates the processing of category specific information for faces and places.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Awasthi, Dr Bhuvanesh
• Authors: Awasthi, B., Sowman, P. F., Friedman, J., and Williams, M. A.
• Subjects: B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology; Q Science > QP Physiology
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > School of Psychology
• Journal Name: Frontiers in Human Neuroscience
• Publisher: Frontiers Research Foundation
• ISSN: 1662-5161
• ISSN (Online): 1662-5161
• Published Online: 21 March 2013
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2013 Awasthi, Sowman, Friedman and Williams
• First Published: First published in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 7: 91
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons License