Understanding the development of face and emotion processing under a predictive processing framework.

Abstract

In the present work, we explore the development of processing of emotional facial configurations under a Predictive Processing (or Predictive Coding) framework. Predictive Processing provides a new approach to brain function that has been used to explain a wide range of processes, from perception to socio-emotional processing. The explanatory power of this framework for adult brain function is widely recognized, but it has yet to be systematically applied to understanding the developing brain. Studying the findings of developmental research under this framework may allow a deeper understanding of the predictive mechanisms and their ontogenetic course, and adds to knowledge on brain functions and developmental processes. Therefore, the goal of this work was to explore the potential complementarity of predictive processing and development. Specifically, we focus on how the development of facial and emotion processing may be understood under a predictive processing framework. The processing of facial expressions was selected due to the developmental relevance of these stimuli, their impact on general emotional development, as well as the large body of literature on this topic (comprised of both well-established but also incongruent findings, which a novel approach may clarify). Considering the main findings of developmental research on the processing of emotion-related facial configurations under this framework, we argue that predictive processing is consistent with developmental evidence and provides a promising avenue for developmental research, as it reveals new questions in the fields of development and emotion processing.

Untangling Self-Reported Interoceptive Attention and Accuracy: Evidence from the European Portuguese Validation of the Body Perception Questionnaire and the Interoceptive Accuracy Scale

“…In recent years, there has been a growing interest in interoception in psychology and neurosciences, as this construct has provided valuable insights to understand cognition and fine-tune theories of neural functioning (e.g., Critchley & Harrison, 2013;Seth & Friston, 2016). Interoception has also been linked to processes such as visual perception and action states (Marshall et al, 2017(Marshall et al, , 2018, as well as with higherorder cognitive domains, such as emotion processing (Barrett, 2016;Pereira et al, 2019) and social cognition (Fotopoulou & Tsakiris, 2017;Ondobaka et al, 2017). Furthermore, interoception has been implicated in a wide range of psychiatric conditions (e.g., mood and anxiety disorders) and transdiagnostic traits such as alexithymia (Khalsa et al, 2018;Murphy et al, 2017;Trevisan et al, 2019).…”

The Embodied-Enactive-Interactive Brain: Bridging Neuroscience and Creative Arts Therapies

“…Developmental studies emphasize the role of attachment figures, with whom one could appropriately place epistemic trust (Fonagy and Allison, 2014), in the progressive refinement of the internal self-model via predictive processing mechanisms, in the course of psychological development (Palmer et al, 2015;Fotopoulou and Tsakiris, 2017;Pereira et al, 2019). In accordance, in cases of insecure attachment, the possibilities for active (or enactive) inference are compromised due to the absence of a secure base for exploration.…”

Maternal pre and perinatal experiences with their full-term, preterm and very preterm newborns

“…The differences that we found among mothers experiences (in the case of a fullterm, preterm and very preterm birth) need to be addressed in providing care for these families. Moreover, evidence suggests that the first experiences of contact with the world are especially relevant for infant's later socio-emotional development, namely it has been found that early social experience affects the developing brain and thereby infants social, cognitive, and emotional development [63]. Infants' early postnatal period is characterized by heightened brain plasticity and, in particular, high sensitivity to social environmental influences [64].…”