Prosopagnosia Essay

Prosopagnosia is defined as the difficulty in recognizing an individuals face; it is broken down into 3 main types; Apperceptive prosopagnosia, associative prosopagnosia and developmental prosopagnosia. Perception is an important aspect when recognizing faces, without recognizing the stimulus (face) you would not be able to identify a person. Therefore the individuals who sufferer from this disorder is unable to accurately recognize a face whether that be the face of a familiar person such as a family member or close friend, the face of a famous person, or even their own face. This paper will look at prosopagnosia in greater detail, it will explain the 3 main types, as well as give insight as to why face recognition is important in our everyday lives. It will look at the sensory basis for prosopagnosia, what regions in the brain are associated with it and how damages can occur. Furthermore it will look at the similarities between Autism Spectrum Disorder and prosopagnosia. Next it will look at the symptoms that occur due to prosopagnosia and the adversity individuals with this disorder have to suffer with. Lastly it will look at how it affects a person’s everyday life. It explains what things can be done to deal with their situation and to overcome the adversity they have faced such as relying on external features to help recognize an individual without having to focus on only their face. Prosopagnosia is not a well-known disorder however as studies go on it is becoming increasingly common, thus it is beneficial to explore this topic further.

Prosopagnosia is a neurological disorder, which is also, known as face blindness. It is defined as the inability to recognize faces (Peelen, Lucas, Mayer, & Vuilleumier, 2009, p. 268). There are three different types of prosopagnosia, which consists of Apperceptive prosopagnosia, Associative prosopagnosia and lastly developmental prosopagnosia. According to Gabriel, Klein & McCall (2008), Apperceptive prosopagnosia

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