Abstract
Recent event-related potential studies have shown that the occipitotemporal N170 component - best known for its sensitivity to faces - is also sensitive to perception of human bodies. Considering that in the timescale of evolution clothing is a relatively new invention that hides the bodily features relevant for sexual selection and arousal, we investigated whether the early N170 brain response would be enhanced to nude over clothed bodies. In two experiments, we measured N170 responses to nude bodies, bodies wearing swimsuits, clothed bodies, faces, and control stimuli (cars). We found that the N170 amplitude was larger to opposite and same-sex nude vs. clothed bodies. Moreover, the N170 amplitude increased linearly as the amount of clothing decreased from full clothing via swimsuits to nude bodies. Strikingly, the N170 response to nude bodies was even greater than that to faces, and the N170 amplitude to bodies was independent of whether the face of the bodies was visible or not. All human stimuli evoked greater N170 responses than did the control stimulus. Autonomic measurements and self-evaluations showed that nude bodies were affectively more arousing compared to the other stimulus categories. We conclude that the early visual processing of human bodies is sensitive to the visibility of the sex-related features of human bodies and that the visual processing of other people's nude bodies is enhanced in the brain. This enhancement is likely to reflect affective arousal elicited by nude bodies. Such facilitated visual processing of other people's nude bodies is possibly beneficial in identifying potential mating partners and competitors, and for triggering sexual behavior.
Highlights
IntroductionOther human beings are the most important visual objects in our environment
Without any doubt, other human beings are the most important visual objects in our environment
The research was conducted according to the ethical standards of the American Psychological Association (APA)
Summary
Other human beings are the most important visual objects in our environment. Compatible with this, cognitive neuroscience has revealed that the perception of other human beings is based on brain mechanisms devoted to processing visual information from this socially and biologically relevant class of stimuli [1]. Much research has focused on neurocognitive mechanisms subserving perception of human faces and bodies as they both provide information necessary for social interaction and interpersonal relationships. Functional neuroimaging studies have identified an interconnected occipitotemporal neural network which shows face-selective response properties and high level of specialization in processing of the facial image [3,5,6]. Perception of human bodies is subserved by a specialized brain network [7,8,9]. Paralleling the functional properties of the face-sensitive mechanisms, these lateral and ventral occipitotemporal circuits are engaged more vigorously during the perception of human bodies and body parts than during the perception of inanimate objects, isolated body parts or faces [7,10,11]
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