Newborn's preference for faces

Four experiments were (timed at elucidating some aspects of the preference for facelike patterns in newborns. Experiment 1 shoived a preference for a stimulus whose components were located in the correct arrangement for a human face. Experiment 2 showed a preference for stimuli that had optimal sensory properties for the newborn visual system. Experiment 3 shoiued that babies directed their attention to a facelike pattern even when it zvas presented simultaneously with a non-facelike stimulus luith optimal sensory properties. Experiment 4 showed the preference for facelike patterns in the temporal hcmificld but not in the nasal hemifield. It was concluded that newborns' preference for facelike patterns reflects the activity of a subcortical system which is sensitive to the structural properties of the stimulus.