Matheson, A.L.; (2012) The influence of facial motion on the neural response during emotion perception in typical and atypical development. Doctoral thesis , UCL (University College London).

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Abstract

The ability to interpret emotional expressions is the key to understanding our social environment. In our everyday lives we are exposed to a huge variety of facial expressions which are constantly updated in response to environmental cues. The neural networks underpinning our cognitive ability to perceive dynamic emotional expressions are poorly understood. This thesis aims to address the effects of motion on our perception of emotional expression from a developmental perspective. The overall aim was to compare the neural correlates of emotion perception of static and dynamic images for the six basic facial expressions in typical and atypical development. Three populations were studied: 1) typically developed adults; 2) atypically developed adults, i.e. young adults who have undergone a surgical resection for paediatric temporal lobe epilepsy; and 3) typically developing infants (4-12-month-olds). Initially, morphed dynamic images for the six basic facial expressions were created, to be used in subsequent studies. These were validated, alongside static photographs, with ratings for accuracy, confidence and intensity. The first and second ERP studies, involving typically developed adults and atypically developed adults respectively, explored the amplitude and latency of the P1 and N170 event-related potential (ERP) components in response to observing static and dynamic images of facial expressions. The final study, involving typically developing infants, explored the amplitude and latency of the P1 and N290 (the N170 precursor). The impact of motion on the development of emotion perception is discussed in relation to the findings presented in this thesis.

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