Supporting data for "Individual Differences in the Impact Of Mask Use On Face Perception"

This thesis investigated the impact of mask use on face perceptual tasks, including face recognition, facial expression recognition, passive viewing, and social categorization and bias, and whether individual differences in related factors, such as eye movement measures, cognitive abilities, and autistic traits, could predict performance impairment due to mask use.Study 1 (Chapter 3) and Study 2 (Chapter 4) focused on the cultural differences in the effect of mask use on face perception, an important issue in the age of globalization. More specifically, Study 1 examined cultural differences in the mask effect on face and facial expression recognition, and whether individual differences in face scanning patterns could account for performance impairment due to mask use. Study 2 examined cultural differences in the mask effect on social categorization, social bias, and passive viewing, and whether individual differences in face scanning patterns could account for impairment due to mask use. In addition to typical-developing populations, Study 3 (Chapter 5) addressed the needs of vulnerable populations with face perception difficulties, such as autism, and examined how autistic and non-autistic individuals were affected by mask use differentially.