Brain Signals of Face Processing as Revealed by Event-Related Potentials

Table 1

Summary of the main characteristics of different event-related potentials (ERPs) related to face processing.

ERP; (Latency in msec); Functional significance	Modulated by	Topography	Possible generators in
P1; (100–130); Face detector,  primary cues	(i) Face parts; (ii) Inversion; (iii) Typicality; (iv) Low-spatial frequency; (v) Stimulus duration (threshold for detection); (vi) Categorization
N170; (150–200); Face detector gestalt-based, structural encoding	(i) Faces versus objects (including within-category adaptation); (ii) Face structure: configuration, inversion, and missing features; (iii) Interindividual typicality; (iv) High-spatial frequency; (v) Familiarity? (controversial)
N250r; (200–300); Access to face recognition units in LTM	(i) Faces versus objects; (ii) Repetition; (iii) ISI duration; (iv) Perceptual masking; (v) Present across different pictures; (vi) Familiarity
N400-like components; (300–500); Retrieval of face memories including verbal/semantic	(i) Face structural congruence in familiar faces (face-feature matching); (ii) Associated person information

FFG: fusiform gyrus; ISI: Interstimulus interval; ITG: inferior temporal gyrus; LG: lingual gyrus; LTM: long-term memory; pSTS: posterior superior temporal sulcus; VPP: vertex positive peak. The possible locations for ERP generators (last column) are depicted in lighter grays.