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Age-Related Difference in Peripheral Information Benefits for Face Perception

Poster Session C - Sunday, March 8, 2026, 5:00 – 7:00 pm PDT, Fairview/Kitsilano Ballrooms

M. Eric Cui^1,2 (mcui@research.baycrest.org), Rojin Firooz^1,3, Konka Paul¹, Janet Pham¹, Yifei Wang¹, Sarah Creighton¹, Björn Herrmann^1,2, Allison Sekuler^1,2,4; ¹Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest Academy for Research and Education, ²Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, ³Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, ⁴Department of Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour, McMaster University

While younger adults typically fixate on the eyes for face identification, many older adults tend to fixate on the nose, which generally contains less information for identification. It remains unclear whether the age-related fixation differences reflect covert sampling mechanisms, such as differential reliance on peripheral information. The current study addresses this gap. We recruited 76 younger (M = 26.2 years) and 34 older adults (M = 63.2 years) to complete a face identification task under two gaze-contingent conditions that simulated either tunnel vision (the Window condition) or a blindspot (the Mask condition). We varied the size of the window and mask (range of diameters = [1.5° - 8.5°]) to control for available information in central and peripheral regions. Overall, performance was much higher in the Mask than the Window condition. As more information became available (smaller Mask or larger Window), accuracy improved for both age groups, but at different rates: the age gap in performance slightly reduced in the Mask condition, but moderately widened in the Window condition. Together, these findings suggest that older adults are less efficient and flexible in integrating information from the peripheral regions for face identification. Our ongoing analyses are focused on using eye-movement data to explain the mechanisms underlying the behavioral results.

Topic Area: PERCEPTION & ACTION: Vision