Greeble (psychology)

Psychological construct pertaining to facial recognition

For detailing added to break up a surface, see Greeble.

An example of a single Greeble

The Greebles are artificial objects designed to be used as stimuli in psychological studies of object and face recognition.[1] They were named by the American psychologist Robert Abelson.[2] The greebles were created by Scott Yu using AliasSketch! software (Macintosh version) for Isabel Gauthier's dissertation work at Yale University working with her PhD advisor, Michael Tarr.[3] They were created as visual stimuli for human cognitive and cognitive neuroscience experiments and were intentionally designed to share some constraints with faces: they have a small number of unique parts in a common configuration that defines an individual's membership in both a particular "family" and being of a particular "gender". Greebles have appeared in a variety of textbooks,[4][5] and in more than 100 scientific articles on human perception and cognition. They have most often been used in as stimuli in face-like tasks where the goal is to study processing or learning for novel, never-before-seen objects. They have also been 3D printed and used in studies of haptic perception.[6]

While Greebles have been used in a wide variety of research paradigms, the two canonical results are both built on an experimental design in which participants learn to: name individual greebles, identify their family, and classify their gender over several experimental sessions. The original behavioral study explores whether expertise with Greebles can produce face-like recognition mechanisms. The authors trained participants to become "Greeble experts" and found that, as with faces, these newly-trained experts exhibited sensitivity to configural transformations–meaning they processed the arrangement of parts more holistically. These results suggest that face-specific effects may stem from general perceptual expertise with homogeneous stimuli rather than from face-exclusive mechanisms.[1] The followup neuroimaging (fMRI) study investigates whether the fusiform face area (FFA) in the brain, traditionally linked to face recognition, is similarly driven by expertise rather than face-specific processing alone. Using fMRI, participants were trained to become experts at recognizing Greebles. With increasing expertise, participants showed heightened activation in the FFA for Greebles, especially in the right middle fusiform gyrus. These results suggest that the FFA is not exclusively specialized for faces but may be recruited for expert-level object recognition more broadly.[7] A similar result was obtained using the same basic design, but ERPs as the dependent measure.[8]

Greebles[1] | samar | osmit | galli | radok | tasio

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plok  |  |  |  |  |
glip  |  |  |  |  |

Since those original studies there has been extensive debate on how to interpret these and related results. A somewhat dated discussion of the differing points of view may be found in a paired set of articles written by Tarr & Gauthier,[9] and Kanwisher.[10] Perhaps most pertinent to the debate, similar activation of the FFA may be found for pre-existing experts–car and bird experts–but only for their domain of expertise (i.e., bird experts do not show face-like effects when viewing cars and car experts do not show face-like effects for viewing birds). Moreover, the degree of activation for the FFA was correlated with the behaviorally measured degree of expertise in each individual participant.[11] Similar effect have been found for other visual domains as well, including chess boards for chess experts.[12][13] For a more modern take on the neural constraints that lead to selective category responses in human visual cortex, see this recent chapter by Mahon.[14]

## Footnotes

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1. ^ a b c Gauthier, ISABEL; Tarr, MICHAEL J. (1997-06-01). "Becoming a "Greeble" Expert: Exploring Mechanisms for Face Recognition". Vision Research. 37 (12): 1673–1682\. doi:10.1016/S0042-6989(96)00286-6. ISSN 0042-6989.
2. ^ Gauthier, Tarr (1997), p.1673
3. ^ Gauthier (1998)
4. ^ John R. Anderson (2005). Cognitive Psychology and its Implications. Worth Publishers. Here: sect.2.1.4 on face recognition
5. ^ E. Bruce Goldstein (2007). Sensation and Perception. Belmont/CA: Wadsworth / Thomson Learning Company. Here: sect.4.5 on evolution and plasticity
6. ^ James, Thomas W.; Shima, Daniel W.; Tarr, Michael J.; Gauthier, Isabel (2005-05-01). "Generating complex three-dimensional stimuli (Greebles) for haptic expertise training". Behavior Research Methods. 37 (2): 353–358\. doi:10.3758/BF03192703. ISSN 1554-3528.
7. ^ Gauthier, Isabel; Tarr, Michael J.; Anderson, Adam W.; Skudlarski, Pawel; Gore, John C. (1999). "Activation of the middle fusiform 'face area' increases with expertise in recognizing novel objects". Nature Neuroscience. 2 (6): 568–573\. doi:10.1038/9224. ISSN 1546-1726.
8. ^ Rossion, B.; Gauthier, I.; Goffaux, V.; Tarr, M.J.; Crommelinck, M. (2002-05-01). "Expertise Training with Novel Objects Leads to Left-Lateralized Facelike Electrophysiological Responses". Psychological Science. 13 (3): 250–257\. doi:10.1111/1467-9280.00446. ISSN 0956-7976.
9. ^ Tarr, Michael J.; Gauthier, Isabel (2000). "FFA: a flexible fusiform area for subordinate-level visual processing automatized by expertise". Nature Neuroscience. 3 (8): 764–769\. doi:10.1038/77666. ISSN 1546-1726.
10. ^ Kanwisher, Nancy (2000). "Domain specificity in face perception". Nature Neuroscience. 3 (8): 759–763\. doi:10.1038/77664. ISSN 1546-1726.
11. ^ Gauthier, Isabel; Skudlarski, Pawel; Gore, John C.; Anderson, Adam W. (2000). "Expertise for cars and birds recruits brain areas involved in face recognition". Nature Neuroscience. 3 (2): 191–197\. doi:10.1038/72140. ISSN 1546-1726.
12. ^ Righi, Giulia; Tarr, Michael J. (2004-08-01). "Are chess experts any different from face, bird, or Greeble experts?". Journal of Vision. 4 (8): 504. doi:10.1167/4.8.504. ISSN 1534-7362.
13. ^ Staszewski, James John (2013). Expertise and skill acquisition: the impact of William G. Chase. Carnegie Mellon symposia on cognition. Carnegie Mellon symposium on cognition. New York London: Psychology press. ISBN 978-1-84872-890-5.
14. ^ Mahon, Bradford Z. (2022), "Domain-specific connectivity drives the organization of object knowledge in the brain", Handbook of Clinical Neurology, Elsevier, pp. 221–244, ISBN 978-0-12-823493-8, retrieved 2025-03-18

## References

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* Abelson, R. P.; Dasgupta, N.; Park, J.; Banaji, M. R. (1998). "Perceptions of the Collective Other" (PDF). Personality and Social Psychology Review. 2 (4): 243–250\. doi:10.1207/s15327957pspr0204_2. PMID 15647132. S2CID 10519738.
* Behrmann, M.; Avidan, G.; Leonard, G.L.; Kimchi, R.; Luna, B.; Humphreys, K; Minshew, N. (2006). "Configural processing in autism and its relationship to face processing" (PDF). Neuropsychologia. 44 (1): 110–129\. doi:10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2005.04.002. PMID 15907952. S2CID 6407530. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-06-17. Retrieved 2014-03-16.
* Behrmann, M.; Marrota, J.; Gauthier, I.; Tarr, M.J.; McKeef, T. J. (2005). "Behavioral change and its neural correlates in visual agnosia after expertise training". Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience. 17 (4): 554–68\. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.631.895. doi:10.1162/0898929053467613. PMID 15829077. S2CID 989799.
* Bukach, C. M.; Bub, D. N.; Gauthier, I.; Tarr, M. J. (2006). "Perceptual expertise effects are not all or none: Spatially limited perceptual expertise for faces in a case of prosopagnosia". Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience. 18 (1): 48–63\. doi:10.1162/089892906775250094. PMID 16417682. S2CID 1788147.
* Cox, D.D.; Meier, P.; Oertelt, N.; DiCarlo, J. J. (2005). "'Breaking' position-invariant object recognition" (PDF). Nature Neuroscience. 8 (9): 1145–1147\. doi:10.1038/nn1519. PMID 16116453. S2CID 1291179.
* Duchaine, B. C.; Dingle, K.; Butterworth, E. Nakayama (2004). "Normal greeble learning in a severe case of developmental prosopagnosia" (PDF). Neuron. 43 (4): 469–73\. doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2004.08.006. PMID 15312646.
* Isabel Gauthier (1998). Dissecting face recognition: The role of expertise and level of categorization in object recognition (Ph.D.). Yale University.
* Gauthier, I.; Behrmann, M.; Tarr, M. J. (2004). "Are Greebles like faces? Using the neuropsychological exception to test the rule" (PDF). Neuropsychologia. 42 (14): 1961–70\. doi:10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2004.04.025. PMID 15381026. S2CID 207234283.
* Gauthier, I.; Tarr, M. J. (1997). "Becoming a "Greeble" expert: Exploring mechanisms for face recognition" (PDF). Vision Research. 37 (12): 1673–1682\. doi:10.1016/s0042-6989(96)00286-6. PMID 9231232.
* Gauthier, I.; Tarr, M.J.; Anderson, A.W.; Skudlarski, P.; Gore, J. C. (1999). "Activation of the middle fusiform "face area" increases with expertise in recognizing novel objects" (PDF). Nature Neuroscience. 2 (6): 568–573\. doi:10.1038/9224. PMID 10448223. S2CID 9504895.
* Gauthier, I.; Williams, P.; Tarr, M. J.; Tanaka, J. (1998). "Training "Greeble" experts: A framework for studying expert object recognition processes" (PDF). Vision Research. 38 (15–16): 2401–2428\. doi:10.1016/s0042-6989(97)00442-2. PMID 9798007.15–16&rft.pages=2401-2428&rft.date=1998&rft_id=info:doi/10.1016/s0042-6989(97)00442-2&rft_id=info:pmid/9798007&rft.aulast=Gauthier&rft.aufirst=I.&rft.au=Williams,+P.&rft.au=Tarr,+M.+J.&rft.au=Tanaka,+J.&rft_id=http://cognitrn.psych.indiana.edu/rgoldsto/perlearn/gauthier_etal98.pdf&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Greeble+(psychology)" class="Z3988">
* Gauthier, I.; Tarr, M. J. (2002). "Unraveling mechanisms for expert object recognition: Bridging brain activity and behavior". Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance. 28 (2): 431–446\. doi:10.1037/0096-1523.28.2.431. PMID 11999864.
* Hoffman, K.L.; Ghazanfar, A.A.; Gauthier, I.; Logothetis, N.K. (2008). "Category-specific responses to faces and objects in primate auditory cortex". Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience. 1: 2. doi:10.3389/neuro.06.002.2007. PMC 2526270. PMID 18958243.
* James, T. W.; Gauthier, I. (2003). "Auditory and action semantic feature types activate sensory-specific perceptual brain regions" (PDF). Current Biology. 13 (20): 1792–6\. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2003.09.039. PMID 14561404.
* James, T.W.; Shima, D.W.; Tarr, M.J.; Gauthier, I. (2005). "Generating complex three-dimensional stimuli (Greebles) for haptic expertise training" (PDF). Behavior Research Methods, Instruments, and Computers. 37 (2): 353–8\. doi:10.3758/bf03192703. PMID 16171207.
* Lahaie, A.; Mottron, L.; Arguin, M.; Berthiaume, C.; Jemel, B.; Saumier, D. (2006). "Face perception in high-functioning autistic adults: evidence for superior processing of face parts, not for a configural face-processing deficit". Neuropsychology. 20 (1): 30–41\. doi:10.1037/0894-4105.20.1.30. PMID 16460220.
* Palmeri, T. J.; Gauthier, I. (2004). "Visual Object Understanding" (PDF). Nature Reviews Neuroscience. 5 (4): 291–303\. doi:10.1038/nrn1364. PMID 15034554. S2CID 9496286. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-09-02.
* Richler, J.J.; Bukach, C.M.; Gauthier, I. (2009). "Context influences holistic processing of nonface objects in the composite task". Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics. 71 (3): 530–540\. doi:10.3758/APP.71.3.530. PMC 3732490. PMID 19304644.
* Richler, J.J.; Tanaka, J.W.; Brown, D.D.; Gauthier, I. (2008). "Why does selective attention to parts fail in face processing?". Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition. 34 (6): 1356–1368\. doi:10.1037/a0013080. PMID 18980400.
* Rossion, B.; Gauthier, I; Goffaux, V.; Tarr, M.J.; Crommelinck, M. (2002). "Expertise training with novel objects leads to left lateralized face-like electrophysiological responses". Psychological Science. 13 (3): 250–257\. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.20.5865. doi:10.1111/1467-9280.00446. PMID 12009046. S2CID 6243772.
* Rossion, B.; Gauthier, I.; Tarr, M.J.; Despland, P.; Bruyer, R; Linotte, S.; Crommelinck, M. (2000). "The N170 occipito-temporal component is delayed and enhanced to inverted faces but not to inverted objects: an electrophysiological account of face-specific processes in the human brain" (PDF). NeuroReport. 11 (1): 69–74\. doi:10.1097/00001756-200001170-00014. PMID 10683832. S2CID 1743543.
* Rossion, B.; Kung, C.C.; Tarr, M. J. (2004). "Visual expertise with nonface objects leads to competition with the early perceptual processing of faces in the human occipitotemporal cortex". PNAS. 42 (14): 1961–70\. Bibcode:2004PNAS..10114521R. doi:10.1073/pnas.0405613101. PMC 521961. PMID 15448209.
* Scherf, K.S.; Behrmann, M.; Minshew, N.; Luna, B. (2008). "Atypical development of face and greeble recognition in autism". Psychiatry. 49 (8): 838–47\. doi:10.1111/j.1469-7610.2008.01903.x. PMC 3071970. PMID 18422548.
* Tarr, M. J.; Gauthier, I. (2000). "FFA: A flexible fusiform area for subordinate-level visual processing automatized by expertise" (PDF). Nature Neuroscience. 3 (8): 764–769\. doi:10.1038/77666. PMID 10903568. S2CID 8355344.
* Vuong, Qc; Peissig, JJ; Harrison, MC; Tarr, MJ (2005). "The role of surface pigmentation for recognition revealed by contrast reversal in faces and Greebles" (PDF). Vision Research. 45 (10): 1213–23\. doi:10.1016/j.visres.2004.11.015. PMID 15733955.
* Wagar, B. M.; Dixon, M. J. (2005). "Past experience influences object representation in working memory". Brain and Cognition. 57 (3): 248–256\. doi:10.1016/j.bandc.2004.08.054. PMID 15780458. S2CID 40215395.
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## External links

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Greeble.

* Scott Yu's original Greebles (under the dropdown titled "Novel Objects")