Neural systems and hormones mediating attraction to infant and child faces.

Lizhu Luo

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00970

Abstract

We find infant faces highly attractive as a result of specific features which Konrad Lorenz termed “Kindchenschema” or “baby schema,” and this is considered to be an important adaptive trait for promoting protective and caregiving behaviors in adults, thereby increasing the chances of infant survival. This review first examines the behavioral support for this effect and physical and behavioral factors which can influence it. It then provides details of the increasing number of neuroimaging and electrophysiological studies investigating the neural circuitry underlying this baby schema effect in parents and non-parents of both sexes. Next it considers potential hormonal contributions to the baby schema effect in both sexes and the neural effects associated with reduced responses to infant cues in post-partum depression, anxiety and drug taking. Overall the findings reviewed reveal a very extensive neural circuitry involved in our perception of cuteness in infant faces, with enhanced activation compared to adult faces being found in brain regions involved in face perception, attention, emotion, empathy, memory, reward and attachment, theory of mind and also control of motor responses. Both mothers and fathers also show evidence for enhanced responses in these same neural systems when viewing their own as opposed to another child. Furthermore, responses to infant cues in many of these neural systems are reduced in mothers with post-partum depression or anxiety or have taken addictive drugs throughout pregnancy. In general reproductively active women tend to rate infant faces as cuter than men, which may reflect both heightened attention to relevant cues and a stronger activation in their brain reward circuitry. Perception of infant cuteness may also be influenced by reproductive hormones with the hypothalamic neuropeptide oxytocin being most strongly associated to date with increased attention and attraction to infant cues in both sexes.

Highlights

The faces of both infants and young children are potent cross-cultural emotive stimuli that adults find both very cute and highly likeable and evoke feelings of protectiveness and care which thereby serve to aid survival of these vulnerable individuals (Brosch et al, 2007; Luo et al, 2011, 2014; Proverbio et al, 2011a; Borgi et al, 2014)
Associations were found in bilateral SFG, right MFG and right middle temporal gyrus (MTG), whereas in fathers they were found in the right inferior parietal lobule (IPL), TABLE 3 | The effect of oxytocin administration on brain response to infant and child faces
An functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study has shown that mothers using drugs during pregnancy had reduced responses to neutral and emotional infant faces in many of the regions discussed above which show enhanced responses to infant faces

Summary

Introduction

The faces of both infants and young children are potent cross-cultural emotive stimuli that adults find both very cute and highly likeable and evoke feelings of protectiveness and care which thereby serve to aid survival of these vulnerable individuals (Brosch et al, 2007; Luo et al, 2011, 2014; Proverbio et al, 2011a; Borgi et al, 2014). The left OFC (BA 11) is more strongly activated by happy vs. neutral infant faces while the right OFC (BA 11) to sad vs. neutral faces

Design Face

Participants

Findings

Conclusions and Future Directions