How Social Representations Influence Vision: An fMRI Investigation

Stanford University, Stanford CA

Investigators

Abstract

In previous research, the PI and colleagues found that faces that are of the same race as participants trigger greater neural activity in face processing regions of the brain than faces that are of a different race. This difference in brain activity occurs for both Black and White participants encoding Black and White faces. The purpose of the current proposal is to examine how social representations might affect the visual processing of faces and objects using both behavioral and functional magnetic resonance imaging techniques. The PI will examine the specific representation of Black Americans as criminal. For well over a half century, social psychologists have demonstrated that Black Americans are stereotyped as violent and criminal. Given the strength of this representation, might it influence how people visually perceive and attend to the stimuli with which they are confronted in their environment? Specifically, to what extent might this stereotypical representation alter: a) the perceptual threshold at which Black faces and crime-relevant objects can be detected, and b) the brain activity in face and object selective areas of the brain as participants are exposed to Black faces and crime-relevant objects? Researchers have long suspected that social beliefs and expectations might influence visual processing, however, the possible mechanisms of this influence are not clearly understood. Using a combination of behavioral and neuroscience methodologies, this research aims to address longstanding social psychological questions that focus on the interplay of social and visual processing. Because the current project focuses specifically on the stereotypical representation of Blacks as criminal, this work also could have practical implications in the areas of crime, policing, and public policy.