Document Type

Dissertation

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy

Major

Psychology

Date of Defense

5-7-2026

Graduate Advisor

Sandra J. E. Langeslag, Ph.D.

Committee

Hannah White, Ph.D.

Carissa Phillipi, Ph.D.

Jan W. van Strien, Ph.D.

Abstract

This study investigated how varying levels of face familiarity modulate the N170 and N250 event-related potential (ERP) components, two neural markers of face perception and recognition. While the N250 is widely considered familiarity-sensitive, the N170 has traditionally been linked to the structural encoding stage of face perception. However, recent research suggests that face familiarity may also influence N170 amplitude and latency. While most previous studies have compared up to three familiarity levels, the present study examined five levels of familiarity: own face, friend’s face, famous face, experimentally familiar face, and unfamiliar face. Twenty-six participants viewed face images while completing a Joe/No Joe task during electroencephalography (EEG) recording. For N170 amplitude, trend analyses were not significant; while there was an overall main effect of face condition, follow-up tests revealed no systematic progression. In contrast, N170 latency was significantly affected by graded familiarity with significant linear trend indicating increasing latency with greater familiarity, and own and friend faces eliciting longer latencies than less familiar categories. N250 amplitude showed a graded familiarity effect with significant linear and quadratic trends, indicating an overall familiarity gradient driven by strong responses to own faces, followed by friend faces, whereas famous, experimentally familiar, and unfamiliar faces did not differ significantly from one another. Overall, these findings refine current models of face recognition by showing that deep personal familiarity shapes not only later identity-related processing, but also the temporal dynamics of early face perception.

Download

Share

COinS