Understanding the Development of Face and Emotion Processing Under a Predictive Processing Framework

In the present work, we explore the development of processing of emotional facial configurations under a predictive processing (or predictive coding) framework. Predictive processing provides a new approach to brain function that has been used to explain a wide range of processes, from perception to socioemotional processing. The explanatory power of this framework for adult brain function is widely recognized, but it has yet to be systematically applied to understanding the developing brain. Studying the findings of developmental research under this framework may allow a deeper understanding of the predictive mechanisms and their ontogenetic course, and adds to knowledge on brain functions and developmental processes. Therefore, the goal of this work was to explore the potential complementarity of predictive processing and development. Specifically, we focus on how the development of facial and emotion processing may be understood under a predictive processing framework. The processing of facial expressions was selected because of the developmental relevance of these stimuli, their impact on general emotional development, as well as the large body of literature on this topic (comprised of both well-established but also incongruent findings, which a novel approach may clarify). Considering the main findings of developmental research on the processing of emotion-related facial configurations under this framework, we argue that predictive processing is consistent with developmental evidence and provides a promising avenue for developmental research, as it reveals new questions in the fields of development and emotion processing.