Face processing in the infant brain after pandemic lockdown

The role of visual experience in the development of face processing has long been debated. We present a new angle on this question through a serendipitous study that cannot easily be repeated. Infants viewed short blocks of faces during fMRI in a repetition suppression task. The same identity was presented multiple times in half of the blocks (Repeat condition) and different identities were presented once each in the other half (Novel condition). In adults, the fusiform face area (FFA) tends to show greater neural activity for Novel vs. Repeat blocks in such designs, suggesting that it can distinguish same vs. different face identities. As part of an ongoing study, we collected data before the COVID-19 pandemic and after an initial local lockdown was lifted. The resulting sample of 12 infants (9–24 months) was divided equally into pre-and post-lockdown groups with matching ages and data quantity/quality. The groups had strikingly different FFA responses: pre-lockdown infants showed repetit...