@article{blais_conducting_2025,

title = {Conducting online visual psychophysics experiments: A replication assessment of two face processing studies},

author = {C. Blais and D. Fiset and L. Côté and V. Ledrou-Paquet and I. Charbonneau},

url = {https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-105004807446&doi=10.1016%2fj.visres.2025.108617&partnerID=40&md5=771b056e57c4d7a34ff7c56ce39a4bd2},

doi = {10.1016/j.visres.2025.108617},

issn = {00426989 (ISSN)},

year  = {2025},

date = {2025-01-01},

journal = {Vision Research},

volume = {233},

abstract = {In vision sciences, researchers rigorously control the testing environment and the physical properties of stimuli, making it challenging to conduct visual perception experiments online. However, online research offers key advantages, including access to larger and more diverse participant samples, helping to address the problem of underpowered studies and to enhance the generalizability of results. In face recognition research, increasing diversity is essential, especially considering evidence that cultural and geographical factors influence basic visual face processing. The present study tested a new online platform, Pack & Go from VPixx Technologies, that supports experiments written in MATLAB and Python. Two face recognition experiments based on a data-driven psychophysical method involving real-time stimulus manipulation and relying on functions from the Psychtoolbox were tested. In Experiment 1, the visual information used for face recognition was compared across four conditions that gradually reduced experimental control over the testing environment and stimulus properties. In Experiment 2, the association between face recognition abilities and information utilization was measured online and compared to lab-based results. In both experiments, results obtained in the lab and online were highly similar, demonstrating the potential of online research for vision science. © 2025 The Author(s)},

note = {Publisher: Elsevier Ltd},

keywords = {adult, article, cultural factor, experiment, Facial Recognition, female, geography, human, human experiment, Humans, information processing, laboratory, male, normal human, online system, Photic Stimulation, photostimulation, physiology, procedures, psychology, Psychophysics, recognition, stimulus response, vision, visual stimulation, Young Adult},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{corno_development_2024,

title = {Development of a visual-perceptual method to assess body image: A cross-cultural validation in Canadian and Spanish women},

author = {G. Corno and A. Paquette and D. Burychka and M. Miragall and M. -C. Rivard and R. M. Baños and S. Bouchard},

url = {https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85189089793&doi=10.1002%2ferv.3086&partnerID=40&md5=99c221e60e3d5caad167cec6fd25dddd},

doi = {10.1002/erv.3086},

issn = {10724133 (ISSN)},

year  = {2024},

date = {2024-01-01},

journal = {European Eating Disorders Review},

abstract = {The objectives of this study were (a) to explore the preliminary cross-cultural validity of a visual-perceptual method to assess body image; (b) to examine potential differences and similarities in body image phenomena between women from two Western countries (i.e., Canada and Spain). 201 self-identified women participated in this cross-sectional study. Ideal, normal, and self-perceived body sizes were assessed using a visual-perceptual method, whereas body dissatisfaction was measured using both a visual-perceptual method and a questionnaire. Visual-perceptual body dissatisfaction was significantly correlated with questionnaire body dissatisfaction, suggesting a preliminary convergent validity between the two assessment methods. Women in both countries were dissatisfied with their bodies. Compared to their self-perceived body, all women chose a significantly thinner visual representation of their “normal” and ideal body. These results may suggest a shift towards the “thin” body as not only ideal, but also normative. This study provides the first evidence for the cross-cultural validity of a visual-perceptual body image assessment tool. The results of the current study confirm the presence of “normative discontent”, and suggest more cross-country similarities than differences among women from these two Western societies. © 2024 Eating Disorders Association and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.},

note = {Publisher: John Wiley and Sons Ltd},

keywords = {Adolescent, adult, analytic method, article, assessment, body dissatisfaction, body image, body image dissatisfaction, Body Size, Canada, Canadian, controlled study, convergent validity, correlation analysis, cross validation, cross-country, Cross-Cultural Comparison, Cross-Sectional Studies, cross-sectional study, cultural anthropology, cultural factor, exploratory research, female, human, Humans, ideal body size, intermethod comparison, Middle Aged, normal body size, psychology, questionnaire, reproducibility, Reproducibility of Results, Self Concept, Spain, Spaniard, Surveys and Questionnaires, thin ideal, underweight, vision, Visual Perception, visual-perceptual method, Young Adult},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{levesque-lacasse_relationship_2024,

title = {The Relationship Between the Ability to Infer Another's Pain and the Expectations Regarding the Appearance of Pain Facial Expressions: Investigation of the Role of Visual Perception},

author = {A. Lévesque-Lacasse and M. -C. Desjardins and D. Fiset and C. Charbonneau and S. Cormier and C. Blais},

url = {https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85171357836&doi=10.1016%2fj.jpain.2023.08.007&partnerID=40&md5=dcfeb2e0eb9f13b42122ddfcbc987fc0},

doi = {10.1016/j.jpain.2023.08.007},

issn = {15265900},

year  = {2024},

date = {2024-01-01},

journal = {Journal of Pain},

volume = {25},

number = {1},

pages = {250–264},

abstract = {Although pain is a commonly experienced and observed affective state, it is frequently misinterpreted, which leads to inadequate caregiving. Studies show the ability at estimating pain in others (estimation bias) and detecting its subtle variations (sensitivity) could emerge from independent mechanisms. While estimation bias is modulated by variables such as empathy level, pain catastrophizing tendency, and overexposure to pain, sensitivity remains unimpacted. The present study verifies if these 2 types of inaccuracies are partly explained by perceptual factors. Using reverse correlation, we measured their association with participants' mental representation of pain, or more simply put, with their expectations of what the face of a person in pain should look like. Experiment 1 shows that both parameters are associated with variations in expectations of this expression. More specifically, the estimation bias is linked with expectations characterized by salient changes in the middle face region, whereas sensitivity is associated with salient changes in the eyebrow region. Experiment 2 reveals that bias and sensitivity yield differences in emotional representations. Expectations of individuals with a lower underestimation tendency are qualitatively rated as expressing more pain and sadness, and those of individuals with a higher level of sensitivity as expressing more pain, anger, and disgust. Together, these results provide evidence for a perceptual contribution in pain inferencing that is independent of other psychosocial variables and its link to observers’ expectations. Perspective: This article reinforces the contribution of perceptual mechanisms in pain assessment. Moreover, strategies aimed to improve the reliability of individuals’ expectations regarding the appearance of facial expressions of pain could potentially be developed, and contribute to decrease inaccuracies found in pain assessment and the confusion between pain and other affective states. © 2023 United States Association for the Study of Pain, Inc.},

note = {Publisher: Elsevier B.V.},

keywords = {anger, article, chronic pain, disgust, emotion, Emotions, Empathy, Estimation bias, expectation, eyebrow, Facial Expression, Facial expressions of pain, human, Humans, mental representation, Mental representations, motivation, Pain, pain assessment, psychology, questionnaire, reliability, reproducibility, Reproducibility of Results, Reverse correlation, sadness, sensitivity, vision, Visual Perception},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{gingras_differences_2023,

title = {Differences in eye movements for face recognition between Canadian and Chinese participants are not modulated by social orientation},

author = {F. Gingras and A. Estéphan and D. Fiset and H. Lingnan and R. Caldara and C. Blais},

url = {https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85179766751&doi=10.1371%2fjournal.pone.0295256&partnerID=40&md5=34499ca3a094ccf3937f07a1fb177c82},

doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0295256},

issn = {19326203 (ISSN)},

year  = {2023},

date = {2023-01-01},

journal = {PLoS ONE},

volume = {18},

number = {12 December},

abstract = {Face recognition strategies do not generalize across individuals. Many studies have reported robust cultural differences between West Europeans/North Americans and East Asians in eye movement strategies during face recognition. The social orientation hypothesis posits that individualistic vs. collectivistic (IND/COL) value systems, respectively defining West European/North American and East Asian societies, would be at the root of many cultural differences in visual perception. Whether social orientation is also responsible for such cultural contrast in face recognition remains to be clarified. To this aim, we conducted two experiments with West European/North American and Chinese observers. In Experiment 1, we probed the existence of a link between IND/COL social values and eye movements during face recognition, by using an IND/COL priming paradigm. In Experiment 2, we dissected the latter relationship in greater depth, by using two IND/COL questionnaires, including subdimensions to those concepts. In both studies, cultural differences in fixation patterns were revealed between West European/North American and East Asian observers. Priming IND/ COL values did not modulate eye movement visual sampling strategies, and only specific subdimensions of the IND/COL questionnaires were associated with distinct eye-movement patterns. Altogether, we show that the typical contrast between IND/COL cannot fully account for cultural differences in eye movement strategies for face recognition. Cultural differences in eye movements for faces might originate from mechanisms distinct from social orientation. © 2023 Gingras et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.},

note = {Publisher: Public Library of Science},

keywords = {adult, article, Asian, Asian People, Canada, Canadian, China, Chinese, clinical article, Diagnosis, East Asian, eye movement, Eye movements, Facial Recognition, female, human, human experiment, Humans, male, North American, Orientation, questionnaire, social value, vision},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{plouffe-demers_facial_2022,

title = {Facial Expression of Pain: Sex Differences in the Discrimination of Varying Intensities},

author = {M. -P. Plouffe-Demers and C. Saumure and D. Fiset and S. Cormier and C. Blais},

url = {https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85138214204&doi=10.1037%2femo0001156&partnerID=40&md5=d5063c7ab05722c16694952ac5d53027},

doi = {10.1037/emo0001156},

issn = {15283542 (ISSN)},

year  = {2022},

date = {2022-01-01},

journal = {Emotion},

volume = {23},

number = {5},

pages = {1254–1266},

abstract = {It has been proposed that women are better than men at recognizing emotions and pain experienced by others. They have also been shown to be more sensitive to variations in pain expressions. The objective of the present study was to explore the perceptual basis of these sexual differences by comparing the visual information used by men and women to discriminate between different intensities of pain facial expressions. Using the data-driven Bubbles method, we were able to corroborate the woman advantage in the discrimination of pain intensities that did not appear to be explained by variations in empathic tendencies. In terms of visual strategies, our results do not indicate any qualitative differences in the facial regions used by men and women. However, they suggest that women rely on larger regions of the face that seems to completely mediate their advantage. This utilization of larger clusters could indicate either that women integrate simultaneously and more efficiently information coming from different areas of the face or that they are more flexible in the utilization of the information present in these clusters. Women would then opt for a more holistic or flexible processing of the facial information, while men would rely on a specific yet rigid integration strategy. © 2022 American Psychological Association},

note = {Publisher: American Psychological Association},

keywords = {adult, article, controlled study, data-driven methods, effect size, Empathy, Facial Expression, facial expressions, female, human, human experiment, information processing, male, normal human, Pain, pain intensity, qualitative research, sample size, sex difference, sex differences, vision, visual acuity, visual information, Visual Perception},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{blais_human_2013,

title = {Human visual processing oscillates: Evidence from a classification image technique},

author = {C. Blais and M. Arguin and F. Gosselin},

url = {https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-84879014749&doi=10.1016%2fj.cognition.2013.04.009&partnerID=40&md5=c2d20982fa4a5c46b9d99d2912284ff6},

doi = {10.1016/j.cognition.2013.04.009},

issn = {00100277},

year  = {2013},

date = {2013-01-01},

journal = {Cognition},

volume = {128},

number = {3},

pages = {353–362},

abstract = {Recent investigations have proposed that visual information may be sampled in a discrete manner, similarly to the snapshots of a camera, but this hypothesis remains controversial. Moreover, assuming a discrete sampling of information, the properties of this sampling-for instance, the frequency at which it operates, and how it synchronizes with the environment-still need to be clarified. We systematically modulated the signal-to-noise ratio of faces through time and examined how it impacted face identification performance. Altogether, our results support the hypothesis of discrete sampling. Furthermore, they suggest that this mechanism may operate at a rate of about 10-15. Hz and that it is synchronized with the onset of the stimulus. © 2013 Elsevier B.V.},

keywords = {amplitude modulation, article, Face, female, human, human experiment, Humans, male, normal human, oscillation, Oscillations, Pattern Recognition, Photic Stimulation, priority journal, reaction time, signal noise ratio, Signal-To-Noise Ratio, stimulus response, Temporal processing, vision, Visual, visual acuity, Visual Perception, Visual sampling, visual stimulation},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{willenbockel_does_2010,

title = {Does Face Inversion Change Spatial Frequency Tuning?},

author = {V. Willenbockel and D. Fiset and A. Chauvin and C. Blais and M. Arguin and J. W. Tanaka and D. N. Bub and F. Gosselin},

url = {https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-76049110562&doi=10.1037%2fa0016465&partnerID=40&md5=d855c4148d6a6f32d96ab71018569d7c},

doi = {10.1037/a0016465},

issn = {00961523 (ISSN)},

year  = {2010},

date = {2010-01-01},

journal = {Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance},

volume = {36},

number = {1},

pages = {122–135},

abstract = {The authors examined spatial frequency (SF) tuning of upright and inverted face identification using an SF variant of the Bubbles technique (F. Gosselin & P. G. Schyns, 2001). In Experiment 1, they validated the SF Bubbles technique in a plaid detection task. In Experiments 2a-c, the SFs used for identifying upright and inverted inner facial features were investigated. Although a clear inversion effect was present (mean accuracy was 24% higher and response times 455 ms shorter for upright faces), SF tunings were remarkably similar in both orientation conditions (mean r = .98; an SF band of 1.9 octaves centered at 9.8 cycles per face width for faces of about 6°). In Experiments 3a and b, the authors demonstrated that their technique is sensitive to both subtle bottom-up and top-down induced changes in SF tuning, suggesting that the null results of Experiments 2a-c are real. The most parsimonious explanation of the findings is provided by the quantitative account of the face inversion effect: The same information is used for identifying upright and inverted inner facial features, but processing has greater sensitivity with the former. © 2010 American Psychological Association.},

keywords = {adult, article, association, attention, Cues, Depth Perception, Face, face perception, female, human, Humans, identification, inversion effect, male, perception, Perceptual Masking, reaction time, Space Perception, spatial frequency, vision, Visual Perception, Young Adult},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{blais_orientation_2009,

title = {Orientation invariance in visual shape perception},

author = {C. Blais and M. Arguin and I. Marleau},

url = {https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-60649103374&doi=10.1167%2f9.2.14&partnerID=40&md5=1fb771ae6c96e3a0ad4e92a307a12d1d},

doi = {10.1167/9.2.14},

issn = {15347362},

year  = {2009},

date = {2009-01-01},

journal = {Journal of Vision},

volume = {9},

number = {2},

abstract = {To assess directly the orientation-invariance of specific shape representation stages in humans, we examined whether rotation (on the image plane or in depth) modulates the conjunction and linear non-separability effects in a shape visual search task (M. Arguin & D. Saumier, 2000; D. Saumier & M. Arguin, 2003). A series of visual search experiments involving simple 2D or 3D shapes show that these target type effects are entirely resistant to both planar and depth rotations. It was found however, that resistance to depth rotation only occurred when the 3D shapes had a richly textured surface but not when they had a uniform surface, with shading as the only reliable depth cue. The results also indicate that both planar and depth rotations affected performance indexes not concerned with the target type effects (i.e. overall RTs and magnitude of display size and target presence effects). Overall, the present findings suggest that the shape representations subtending the conjunction and linear non-separability effects are invariant across both planar and depth rotations whereas other shape representation stages involved in the task are orientation-specific. © ARVO.},

keywords = {adult, article, association, attention, Cues, Depth Perception, Form Perception, human, Humans, methodology, Orientation, Pattern Recognition, Photic Stimulation, photostimulation, physiology, Rotation, vision, Visual Perception, Young Adult},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{blais_culture_2008,

title = {Culture shapes how we look at faces},

author = {C. Blais and R. E. Jack and C. Scheepers and D. Fiset and R. Caldara},

url = {https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-51549087752&doi=10.1371%2fjournal.pone.0003022&partnerID=40&md5=e75dcf9792dbd03fd1ef5894b81bfc4f},

doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0003022},

issn = {19326203 (ISSN)},

year  = {2008},

date = {2008-01-01},

journal = {PLoS ONE},

volume = {3},

number = {8},

abstract = {Background: Face processing, amongst many basic visual skills, is thought to be invariant across all humans. From as early as 1965, studies of eye movements have consistently revealed a systematic triangular sequence of fixations over the eyes and the mouth, suggesting that faces elicit a universal, biologically-determined information extraction pattern. Methodology/Principal Findings: Here we monitored the eye movements of Western Caucasian and East Asian observers while they learned, recognized, and categorized by race Western Caucasian and East Asian faces. Western Caucasian observers reproduced a scattered triangular pattern of fixations for faces of both races and across tasks. Contrary to intuition, East Asian observers focused more on the central region of the face. Conclusions/Significance: These results demonstrate that face processing can no longer be considered as arising from a universal series of perceptual events. The strategy employed to extract visual information from faces differs across cultures. © 2008 Blais et al.},

keywords = {adult, article, Asian, Asian Continental Ancestry Group, Caucasian, Classification, Cross-Cultural Comparison, cultural anthropology, cultural factor, Culture, East Asian, European Continental Ancestry Group, Eye, eye fixation, eye movement, Eye movements, Face, face asymmetry, face recognition, female, Fixation, histology, human, human experiment, Humans, Learning, male, methodology, Mouth, normal human, Nose, observer variation, Ocular, physiology, race difference, recognition, Recognition (Psychology), vision, visual memory, Visual Perception},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{fiset_features_2008,

title = {Features for identification of uppercase and lowercase letters: Research article},

author = {D. Fiset and C. Blais and C. Éthier-Majcher and M. Arguin and D. Bub and F. Gosselin},

url = {https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-57349093513&doi=10.1111%2fj.1467-9280.2008.02218.x&partnerID=40&md5=63c800273bf25eb2c6d5c0cf8c2b714a},

doi = {10.1111/j.1467-9280.2008.02218.x},

issn = {09567976},

year  = {2008},

date = {2008-01-01},

journal = {Psychological Science},

volume = {19},

number = {11},

pages = {1161–1168},

abstract = {The determination of the visual features mediating letter identification has a long-standing history in cognitive science. Researchers have proposed many sets of letter features as important for letter identification, but no such sets have yet been derived directly from empirical data. In the study reported here, we applied the Bubbles technique to reveal directly which areas at five different spatial scales are efficient for the identification of lowercase and uppercase Arial letters. We provide the first empirical evidence that line terminations are the most important features for letter identification. We propose that these small features, represented at several spatial scales, help readers to discriminate among visually similar letters. © Copyright © 2008 Association for Psychological Science.},

keywords = {article, human, Humans, Linguistics, recognition, Recognition (Psychology), vision, Visual Perception},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}