IADR Abstract Archives
Interventions for Social Bias and Attention Towards Visible Facial Differences
Objectives: To establish the differences in social bias and visual attention between typical faces and individuals with visible facial differences and to modify people’s responses to these through an intervention.
Methods: 120 participants observed a random series of four facial photos (male and female, typical and visible differences faces) while their eye movements were recorded using Tobii Pro Fusion. After each photo, three Yes/No questions assessed the observer’s perception in relation to the social competence, intellectual competence, and psychological adjustment of the person presented on the photo. Participants were then randomized into experimental or control groups and exposed to different video interventions. GLMM and Mixed ANOVA analyses revealed differences in social bias and visual attention between groups, comparing baseline to post-test data.
Results: At baseline, images of individuals with visible facial differences received significantly longer fixation durations and higher fixation counts on the defect area compared to typical faces, with a substantial main effect for stimulus type, F(1, 119) = 733.90, p < .001, ηp2 = 0.86. These images also elicited more negative responses on the social bias questionnaire, B = -2.84, p < .001, Exp(B) = 0.06. Following the intervention, both groups showed reduced fixation duration and count on the nasal area of visible facial differences, along with an increase in positive responses on the questionnaire. These changes were more pronounced in the experimental group than in the control. The interaction between intervention, stimuli, and session was statistically significant for both visual attention, F(1, 117) = 4.13, p < 0.05, ηp2 = 0.03, and social bias, B = 2.17, p < .001, Exp(B) = 8.75.
Conclusions: The intervention led to changes in visual attention and two components of social bias, suggesting that repeated exposure, disconfirming information, and Entertainment-Education videos are promising strategies for promoting knowledge and belief shifts, essentials for behavioural change.
Methods: 120 participants observed a random series of four facial photos (male and female, typical and visible differences faces) while their eye movements were recorded using Tobii Pro Fusion. After each photo, three Yes/No questions assessed the observer’s perception in relation to the social competence, intellectual competence, and psychological adjustment of the person presented on the photo. Participants were then randomized into experimental or control groups and exposed to different video interventions. GLMM and Mixed ANOVA analyses revealed differences in social bias and visual attention between groups, comparing baseline to post-test data.
Results: At baseline, images of individuals with visible facial differences received significantly longer fixation durations and higher fixation counts on the defect area compared to typical faces, with a substantial main effect for stimulus type, F(1, 119) = 733.90, p < .001, ηp2 = 0.86. These images also elicited more negative responses on the social bias questionnaire, B = -2.84, p < .001, Exp(B) = 0.06. Following the intervention, both groups showed reduced fixation duration and count on the nasal area of visible facial differences, along with an increase in positive responses on the questionnaire. These changes were more pronounced in the experimental group than in the control. The interaction between intervention, stimuli, and session was statistically significant for both visual attention, F(1, 117) = 4.13, p < 0.05, ηp2 = 0.03, and social bias, B = 2.17, p < .001, Exp(B) = 8.75.
Conclusions: The intervention led to changes in visual attention and two components of social bias, suggesting that repeated exposure, disconfirming information, and Entertainment-Education videos are promising strategies for promoting knowledge and belief shifts, essentials for behavioural change.