Effect of perceived gaze direction on emotion processing

描述（由申请人提供）：拟议研究的主要目标是检查感知的眼睛注视方向对面部情感处理的影响。以前的研究工作检查凝视和面部情感知觉已独立进行。然而，有充分的理由相信，这些线索共享一个潜在的信号值，无论是接近或回避。具体而言，它是假设，直接眼睛注视将促进面部传达的愤怒的感知和检测，而避免眼睛注视将促进面部传达的恐惧的感知和检测。提出了四个研究阶段。使用反应时间和记忆范例，第一阶段调查的概念，直接和避免眼睛注视促进或抑制愤怒和恐惧的表达的处理。第二阶段利用视觉搜索范式来探索这些线索的组合处理是天生准备的可能性。第三阶段，研究杏仁核在处理面部交流的愤怒和恐惧以及直接与回避的眼睛注视中的作用。最后，第四阶段通过解决面部情感的作用，扩展了先前存在的关于联合注意力的文献。从广义上讲，这项研究将1）帮助解决面部情感感知领域长期存在的争议，2）将两条看似不同的研究路线（视觉介导的注意力和面部情感）联系在一起，3）帮助理论家更好地理解精神病理学障碍，如自闭症和精神分裂症，以及以非语言面部线索处理问题为标志的局部脑损伤，如杏仁核切开术。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The primary goal of the proposed research is to examine the effect that perceived eye gaze direction has on the processing of facial affect. Previous research efforts examining gaze and facial affect perception have been conducted independently. However, there is good reason believe that these cues share an underlying signal value of either approach or avoidance. Specifically, it is hypothesized that direct eye gaze will facilitate the perception and detection of facially communicated anger, whereas averted eye gaze will facilitate the perception and detection of facially communicated fear. Four phases of research are proposed. Using reaction time and memory paradigms, Phase 1 investigates the notion that direct and averted eye gaze facilitate or inhibit the processing of anger and fear expressions. Phase 2 utilizes a visual search paradigm to explore the possibility that the combined processing of these cues is innately prepared. Phase 3, investigates the role of the amygdala in processing facially communicated anger and fear combined with direct versus averted eye gaze. Finally, Phase 4 extends a pre-existing literature on joint attention by addressing the role of facial affect. Broadly, this research will 1) help resolve longstanding controversies in the field of facial affect perception, 2) tie together two seemingly disparate lines of research (visually mediated attention and facial affect), and 3) help theorists better understand psychopathological disorders such as autism and schizophrenia, and localized brain lesions such as amygdalotomy that are marked by problems in the processing of nonverbal facial cues.