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Abstract:
We studied whether faces could differentially affect visual
extinction compared with other visual stimuli in two patients with
right brain damage and left spatial neglect. On each trial, a face,
a name, or a meaningless shape were briefly presented in a box
frame placed at 6< from fixation in the right, left or both
visual hemifields. On bilateral trials, the two patients
extinguished a left-side face (20-30%) much less often than a
left-side name (46-58%) or left-side shape (48-50%). Conversely,
they extinguished a left-side shape more often when accompanied by
a right-side face (46-60%) rather than a right-side name (13-22%).
These findings suggest that (1) attention and extinction operate
after the detection and recognition of a face has taken place in
the visual system; (2) faces can capture attention and be more
difficult to ignore than other objects, consistent with their
important social significance.
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