Babies prefer looking at attractive faces because these faces more closely match the mental "prototype" of a face that they develop through early visual experiences.
Understanding Infant Face Perception
Infants aren't born with a fully formed concept of what a face should look like. Instead, they build this understanding through exposure to faces in their environment. Here's a breakdown of how this process leads to a preference for attractive faces:
- Formation of a Face Prototype: As babies observe faces, their brains create a kind of average or "prototype" of a face. This isn't a specific face but rather a collection of common facial features and proportions that they frequently see.
- Attractiveness as Prototypicality: Research suggests that faces considered attractive tend to be those that are closest to this average, or prototypical, face that infants develop. This is not to say babies are making judgements of attractiveness in the way that adults do, but that their brains are simply drawn to faces that are more typical.
The Role of Facial Features
While we often think of attractiveness in subjective terms, certain features contribute to how "facelike" a face appears to an infant, thereby boosting its perceived attractiveness. These include:
- Symmetry: Symmetrical faces often align better with the face prototype.
- Averageness: Faces that are less unique and more average tend to be seen as attractive to infants, as they conform better to the developing mental image.
- Clarity: Faces that are clear, with well-defined features, are easier for infants to process.
What the Research Tells Us
The cited reference states:
The interpretation of the attractiveness effect in infants that results from this finding is that attractive faces are seen as more “facelike” because they more closely match the prototype that infants have formed from their experience of see- ing faces.
This clearly indicates that babies are not evaluating attractiveness in the same way as adults. Instead, their brains are responding to faces that fit their developing schema of what a face should look like.
Examples
To illustrate, consider the following:
- A baby who primarily sees faces with very wide-set eyes may, at first, find faces with normally spaced eyes more attractive because they better fit their prototype.
- If a baby has predominantly seen faces with gentle curves and soft features, they might find faces with very harsh, angular features less attractive simply because they diverge from their prototype.
Why Is This Important?
Understanding this preference helps us appreciate:
- Early Social Development: Babies' preference for attractive faces might influence how they interact with the world and the type of attention they receive.
- Cognitive Processing: The way babies form and process face prototypes provides insights into early cognitive development.
In conclusion, babies like attractive faces because these faces more closely align with the mental prototype of a face they develop through experience. It's not about subjective beauty, but about how well a face fits their visual learning.
