Early ERPs to faces: aging, luminance and individual differences
Recently, Rousselet et al. reported a 1 ms/year delay in visual processing speed in a sample of healthy aged 62 subjects (Frontiers in Psychology 2010, 1:19). Here, we replicate this finding in an independent sample of 59 subjects and investigate the contribution of optical factors (pupil size and l...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2013-05-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Psychology |
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| Online Access: | http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00268/full |
| _version_ | 1819264257087242240 |
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| author | Magdalena Maria Bieniek Luisa Sophie Frei Luisa Sophie Frei Guillaume A Rousselet |
| author_facet | Magdalena Maria Bieniek Luisa Sophie Frei Luisa Sophie Frei Guillaume A Rousselet |
| author_sort | Magdalena Maria Bieniek |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Recently, Rousselet et al. reported a 1 ms/year delay in visual processing speed in a sample of healthy aged 62 subjects (Frontiers in Psychology 2010, 1:19). Here, we replicate this finding in an independent sample of 59 subjects and investigate the contribution of optical factors (pupil size and luminance) to the age-related slowdown and to individual differences in visual processing speed. We conducted two experiments. In experiment 1 we recorded EEG from subjects aged 18-79. Subjects viewed images of faces and phase scrambled noise textures under nine luminance conditions, ranging from 0.59 to 60.8 cd/m2. We manipulated luminance using neutral density filters. In experiment 2, 10 young subjects (age <35) viewed similar stimuli through pinholes ranging from 1 to 5 mm. In both experiments, subjects were tested twice. We found a 1 ms/year slowdown in visual processing that was independent of luminance. Aging effects became visible around 125 ms post-stimulus and did not affect the onsets of the face-texture ERP differences. Furthermore, luminance modulated the entire ERP time-course from 60 to 500 ms. Luminance effects peaked in the N170 time window and were independent of age. Importantly, senile miosis and individual differences in pupil size did not account for aging differences and inter-subject variability in processing speed. The pinhole manipulation also failed to match the ERPs of old subjects to those of young subjects. Overall, our results strongly suggest that early ERPs to faces (<200 ms) are delayed by aging and that these delays are of cortical, rather than optical origin. Our results also demonstrate that even late ERPs to faces are modulated by low-level factors. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-23T20:26:36Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-a0906da9d261464d9f65a28b6ff0a7ca |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-1078 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-23T20:26:36Z |
| publishDate | 2013-05-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Psychology |
| spelling | doaj.art-a0906da9d261464d9f65a28b6ff0a7ca2022-12-21T17:32:21ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782013-05-01410.3389/fpsyg.2013.0026844044Early ERPs to faces: aging, luminance and individual differencesMagdalena Maria Bieniek0Luisa Sophie Frei1Luisa Sophie Frei2Guillaume A Rousselet3University of GlasgowUniversity of GlasgowUniversity of GlasgowUniversity of GlasgowRecently, Rousselet et al. reported a 1 ms/year delay in visual processing speed in a sample of healthy aged 62 subjects (Frontiers in Psychology 2010, 1:19). Here, we replicate this finding in an independent sample of 59 subjects and investigate the contribution of optical factors (pupil size and luminance) to the age-related slowdown and to individual differences in visual processing speed. We conducted two experiments. In experiment 1 we recorded EEG from subjects aged 18-79. Subjects viewed images of faces and phase scrambled noise textures under nine luminance conditions, ranging from 0.59 to 60.8 cd/m2. We manipulated luminance using neutral density filters. In experiment 2, 10 young subjects (age <35) viewed similar stimuli through pinholes ranging from 1 to 5 mm. In both experiments, subjects were tested twice. We found a 1 ms/year slowdown in visual processing that was independent of luminance. Aging effects became visible around 125 ms post-stimulus and did not affect the onsets of the face-texture ERP differences. Furthermore, luminance modulated the entire ERP time-course from 60 to 500 ms. Luminance effects peaked in the N170 time window and were independent of age. Importantly, senile miosis and individual differences in pupil size did not account for aging differences and inter-subject variability in processing speed. The pinhole manipulation also failed to match the ERPs of old subjects to those of young subjects. Overall, our results strongly suggest that early ERPs to faces (<200 ms) are delayed by aging and that these delays are of cortical, rather than optical origin. Our results also demonstrate that even late ERPs to faces are modulated by low-level factors.http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00268/fullAgingindividual differencesEvent Related PotentialsPupil sizeluminancesenile miosis |
| spellingShingle | Magdalena Maria Bieniek Luisa Sophie Frei Luisa Sophie Frei Guillaume A Rousselet Early ERPs to faces: aging, luminance and individual differences Frontiers in Psychology Aging individual differences Event Related Potentials Pupil size luminance senile miosis |
| title | Early ERPs to faces: aging, luminance and individual differences |
| title_full | Early ERPs to faces: aging, luminance and individual differences |
| title_fullStr | Early ERPs to faces: aging, luminance and individual differences |
| title_full_unstemmed | Early ERPs to faces: aging, luminance and individual differences |
| title_short | Early ERPs to faces: aging, luminance and individual differences |
| title_sort | early erps to faces aging luminance and individual differences |
| topic | Aging individual differences Event Related Potentials Pupil size luminance senile miosis |
| url | http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00268/full |
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