The development of the own-race advantage in school-age children: A morphing face paradigm.

Previous studies examining the other-race effect in school-age children mostly focused on recognition memory performance. Here we investigated perceptual discriminability for Asian-like versus Caucasian-like morph faces in school-age Taiwanese children and adults. One-hundred-and-two 5- to 12-year-old children and twenty-three adults performed a sequential same/different face matching task, where they viewed an Asian- or a Caucasian-parent face followed by either the same parent face or a different morphed face (containing 15%, 30%, 45%, or 60% contribution from the other parent face) and judged if the two faces looked the same. We computed the d' as the sensitivity index for each age groups. We also analyzed the group mean rejection rates as a function of the morph level and fitted with a cumulative normal distribution function. Results showed that the adults and the oldest 11-12-year-old children exhibited a greater sensitivity (d') and a smaller discrimination threshold (μ) in the Asian-parent condition than those in the Caucasian-parent condition, indicating the presence of an own-race advantage. On the contrary, 5- to 10-year-old children showed an equal sensitivity and similar discrimination thresholds for both conditions, indicating an absence of the own-race advantage. Moreover, a gradual development in enhancing the discriminability for the Asian-parent condition was observed from age 5 to 12; however, the progression in the Caucasian-parent condition was less apparent. In sum, our findings suggest that expertise in face processing may take the entire childhood to develop, and supports the perceptual learning view of the other-race effect-the own-race advantage seen in adulthood likely reflects a result of prolonged learning specific to faces most commonly seen in one's visual environment such as own-race faces

Morphed female faces stimuli.

<p>An example of a set of linearly morphed female faces produced by image averaging of one Asian- and Caucasian-parent face pair. The numerator indicates the percent contribution to the morphed face from Asian parent and the denominator indicates the percent contribution from the Caucasian parent.</p

Adults’ mean rejection rates.

<p>The adults’ mean rejection rate (Y-axis) as a function of the morph level (X-axis) for the Asian-parent (black circles) and the Caucasian-parent condition (white circles). The rejection rate is the probability of judging the comparison face as “different” from the target face (i.e., the same as the <i>P</i>(diff) in <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0195020#pone.0195020.t001" target="_blank">Table 1</a>). The morph level denotes the physical difference (in linear unit) between the target parent face and the comparison face.</p

The group mean probability of judging the comparison faces as “different” (<i>P</i>(diff)) at the 5 morph levels and the computation using the signal detection theory (showing correct rejections, false alarms, misses, hits, and d primes) for the Asian-parent and Caucasian-parent conditions in children and adults.

<p>The numbers in the parenthesis denote the standard errors (SE) of the group means.</p

The development of the own-race advantage in school-age children: A morphing face paradigm (adult's data)

We investigated perceptual discriminability for Asian-like versus Caucasian-like morph faces in school-age Taiwanese children and adults. One-hundred-and-two 5- to 12-year-old children and twenty-three adults performed a sequential same/different face matching task, where they viewed an Asian- or a Caucasian-parent face followed by either the same parent face or a different morphed face (containing 15%, 30%, 45%, or 60% contribution from the other parent face) and judged if the two faces looked the same. We computed the <i>d’</i> as the sensitivity index for each age groups. We also analyzed the group mean rejection rates as a function of the morph level and fitted with a cumulative normal distribution function. Results showed that the adults and the oldest 11-12-year-old children exhibited a greater sensitivity (<i>d</i>’) and a smaller discrimination threshold (<i>m</i>) in the Asian-parent condition than those in the Caucasian-parent condition, indicating the presence of an own-race advantage. On the contrary, 5- to 10-year-old children showed an equal sensitivity and similar discrimination thresholds for both conditions, indicating an absence of the own-race advantage. Moreover, a gradual development in enhancing the discriminability for the Asian-parent condition was observed from age 5 to 12; however, the progression in the Caucasian-parent condition was less apparent. In sum, our findings suggest that expertise in face processing may take the entire childhood to develop, and supports the <i>perceptual learning view</i> of the other-race effect--the own-race advantage seen in adulthood likely reflects a result of prolonged learning specific to faces most commonly seen in one’s visual environment such as own-race faces

The estimated discrimination thresholds (<i>μ</i>) and slope parameters (σ) of the group psychometric functions for the Asian-parent and Caucasian-parent conditions.

<p>The numbers in the parenthesis are standard errors (<i>SE</i>) of the estimates by <i>bootstrap resampling</i> with an iteration size of 200. Eleven iterations were performed for the adults’ psychometric functions, and ten iterations were performed for the children’s functions).</p

Data Analysis_Children_corrected SDT 20171109.xlsx

<p>We investigated perceptual discriminability for Asian-like versus Caucasian-like morph faces in school-age Taiwanese children and adults. One-hundred-and-two 5- to 12-year-old children and twenty-three adults performed a sequential same/different face matching task, where they viewed an Asian- or a Caucasian-parent face followed by either the same parent face or a different morphed face (containing 15%, 30%, 45%, or 60% contribution from the other parent face) and judged if the two faces looked the same. We computed the <i>d’</i> as the sensitivity index for each age groups. We also analyzed the group mean rejection rates as a function of the morph level and fitted with a cumulative normal distribution function. Results showed that the adults and the oldest 11-12-year-old children exhibited a greater sensitivity (<i>d</i>’) and a smaller discrimination threshold (<i>m</i>) in the Asian-parent condition than those in the Caucasian-parent condition, indicating the presence of an own-race advantage. On the contrary, 5- to 10-year-old children showed an equal sensitivity and similar discrimination thresholds for both conditions, indicating an absence of the own-race advantage. Moreover, a gradual development in enhancing the discriminability for the Asian-parent condition was observed from age 5 to 12; however, the progression in the Caucasian-parent condition was less apparent. In sum, our findings suggest that expertise in face processing may take the entire childhood to develop, and supports the <i>perceptual learning view</i> of the other-race effect--the own-race advantage seen in adulthood likely reflects a result of prolonged learning specific to faces most commonly seen in one’s visual environment such as own-race faces. </p

Illustration of a sample trial of the sequential same/different face matching task.

<p>Illustration of a sample trial of the sequential same/different face matching task.</p

Asian-Pacific consensus statement on the management of chronic hepatitis B: A 2012 update

Large volume of new data on the natural history and treatment of chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection have become available since 2008. These include further studies in asymptomatic subjects with chronic HBV infection and community-based cohorts, the role of HBV genotype/naturally occurring HBV mutations, the application of non-invasive assessment of hepatic fibrosis and quantitation of HBV surface antigen and new drug or new strategies towards more effective therapy. To update HBV management guidelines, relevant new data were reviewed and assessed by experts from the region, and the significance of the reported findings was discussed and debated. The earlier "Asian-Pacific consensus statement on the management of chronic hepatitis B" was revised accordingly. The key terms used in the statement were also defined. The new guidelines include general management, indications for fibrosis assessment, time to start or stop drug therapy, choice of drug to initiate therapy, when and how to monitor the patients during and after stopping drug therapy. Recommendations on the therapy of patients in special circumstances, including women in childbearing age, patients with antiviral drug resistance, concurrent viral infection, hepatic decompensation, patients receiving immune suppression or chemotherapy and patients in the setting of liver transplantation and hepatocellular carcinoma, are also included