| Abstract: | Event-related potentials were used to examine the recognition of happy and angry faces by 4- to 6-year-old children. In 2 experiments, Ss viewed 100-ms presentations of a happy face and an angry face posed by a single model. The frequency with which these expressions were presented varied across experiments, and which face served as the target or nontarget stimulus varied within experiments. In Experiment 1, an early negative component (N400) was observed that distinguished between the 2 expressions, and a 2nd, later positive component (P700) was observed that distinguished between target and nontarget events. In Experiment 2, these components were again observed, although both now distinguished only between low- and high-probability events. Both were absent at posterior scalp, were most prominent at parietal and central scalp, and were minimal at frontal scalp. These results are discussed in the context of children's allocation of attentional and memory resources for briefly presented affective stimuli. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved) |
