Processing of Real and AI-Generated Human Faces: An Exploratory EEG Study
Source record
mamsheli-2026-eeg-ai-faces· 2026 · Proceedings of the European Conference on Cognitive Ergonomics (ECCE 2026)
Evidence tier: B (peer-reviewed-conference) · Verification: verified-abstract (compiler confidence: medium)
Bottom line: Real and AI-generated faces evoked different early brain responses (N170, N400, EPN) but not a different late LPP, and were rated differently for expressiveness and 'sense of self', while perceived intelligence and appeal did not differ.
Citation
Saryz Taha Mamsheli, Amanda Tunes Paulsen, Enrico Cipriani, Simone Grassini (2026). Processing of Real and AI-Generated Human Faces: An Exploratory EEG Study. Proceedings of the European Conference on Cognitive Ergonomics (ECCE 2026), 375-379. https://doi.org/10.1145/3822301.3822351
Verification entry (identifiers, resolvers, claims with source locations): /data/citations.json#mamsheli-2026-eeg-ai-faces
Study design
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Design | Exploratory EEG (ERP) study with post-recording questionnaire; poster analyses restricted to real vs AI-generated human faces |
| Modality | image-face |
| Stimuli | Images of humans, AI-generated humans, robots and dolls with happy, fearful and neutral expressions (generator not stated in abstract) |
| Participants (N) | 28 |
| Topics | uncanny-valley, neural, implicit-detection |
Results
| Metric | Value | Note |
|---|---|---|
| ERP differences, real vs AI-generated faces | significant for N170, N400 and EPN; not for LPP | early stages differentiate the faces |
| Questionnaire: expressiveness; sense of self and inner consciousness | significantly different between real and AI faces | |
| Questionnaire: perceived intelligence and appeal | n.s. |
Mechanism relevance
implicit-sensitivity
Limitations
- Exploratory poster analyses
- Small N
- Generator not stated in abstract
- Values from abstract only
Cited in
- MR-0002: The Uncanny Valley and Synthetic Media: Does It Exist, What Causes It, and Have Deepfakes Crossed It?
Verification
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Status | verified-abstract |
| Compiler confidence | medium |
| Checked on | 2026-10-19 |
| Via | OpenAlex abstract record W7212435617 for doi:10.1145/3822301.3822351 |
Values on this page have not all been checked against the full text. Confirm them against the primary source before high-stakes use.