Work

The social evaluation of faces: a meta-analysis of functional neuroimaging studies

Year: 2012

Type: review

Study designs: Systematic Review, Meta-Analysis

Abstract: Neuroscience research on the social evaluation of faces has accumulated over the last decade, yielding divergent results. We used a meta-analytic technique, multi-level kernel density analysis (MKDA), to analyze 29 neuroimaging studies on face evaluation. Across negative face evaluations, we observed the most consistent activations in bilateral amygdala. Across positive face evaluations, we observed the most consistent activations in medial prefrontal cortex, pregenual anterior cingulate cortex (pgACC), medial orbitofrontal cortex (mOFC), left caudate and nucleus accumbens (NAcc). Based on additional analyses comparing linear and non-linear responses, we propose a ventral/dorsal dissociation within the amygdala, wherein separate populations of neurons code for face valence and intensity, respectively. Finally, we argue that some of the differences between studies are attributable to differences in the typicality of face stimuli. Specifically, extremely attractive faces are more likely to elicit responses in NAcc/caudate and mOFC.

Source: Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience

DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsr090

Authors: Peter Mende-Siedlecki, Christopher P. Said, Alexander Todorov

Institutions: Radboud University Nijmegen, Princeton University, New York University

Language: English

Topic: Face Recognition and Perception

Subfield: Cognitive Neuroscience

Field: Neuroscience

Domain: Life Sciences

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $2,379

Funders: National Science Foundation, Sage Foundation