Is there a clinical/technical term for an aversion to looking at people's faces?

[MrCoffee]

Well, is there?


I'm not talking about avoiding eye contact in a face-to-face encounter, I'm talking about studiously avoiding looking at the faces of strangers on the street, for example.

[lost-in-nj]

1. yup

it's called

mind-my-ownbusinessitis

I see it a lot on elevators....

:hi:


lost

[MrCoffee]

2. That is not Latin enough

It needs to be Latin-y. Or maybe Greek.


Doesn't the -itis indicate that someone has a swollen or inflamed mind-your-ownbusiness?

[chromotone]

31. How about "Phaceaphobia?"

:shrug:

[annabanana]

35. anfaceonia?., . . . ummm,.. . . aversovision?

convisagemania?

[RainDog]

3. eye-voidance

okay, I made it up.

[Richardo]

30. !

:rofl: + :thumbsup:

[Captain Hilts]

4. Yes. I can't think of it. It is associated with some forms of VERY mild autism. nt

[Dr Morbius]

5. Under the Wiki article on eye contact, it contains these words:

A study by University of Stirling psychologists concluded that children who avoid eye contact while considering their responses to questions had higher rates of correct answers than children who maintained eye contact. One researcher theorized that looking at human faces requires a lot of mental processing, which detracts from the cognitive task at hand. Researchers also noted that a blank stare indicated a lack of understanding.

Dr. Gwyneth Doherty-Sneddon was quoted as having said,

"Looking at faces is quite mentally demanding. We get useful information from the face when listening to someone, but human faces are very stimulating and all this takes processing. So when we are trying to concentrate and process something else that's mentally demanding, it's unhelpful to look at faces."

http://www.ask.com/wiki/Eye_contact

So I would think scientists - who would be the ones inventing such terms - consider avoidance of faces on a par with avoidance of eye contact. If I were called upon to create such a term, I'd call it facial avoidance syndrome, or FAS, because ELAA (everybody loves another acronym).

I just love that researchers "noted" that a blank stare indicated a lack of understanding!

[flvegan]

6. Yes. I call mine "Nice Boobs Syndrome"

Yes, I know your eyes are up there but I'm looking at what I like best.

[Nuclear Unicorn]

8. Why would you be looking at my boobs if...

...you're never going to meet them?

[flvegan]

11. All the more reason to look at them.

[gatorboy]

28. A firm hand shake is also probably out of the question.

[LeftyMom]

10. I'm sorry to objectify you, but your rack is kinda awesome.

edit: Actually, I lied. I'm pretty much okay with objectifying you.

[Nuclear Unicorn]

12. I was blessed...

...with a rack that doesn't inspire objectification.

I hate being blessed.

:(

[LeftyMom]

13. I'm still waiting for the puberty fairy to visit.

Since she's 15 years or so overdue, I think she must have lost my address.

[gatorboy]

29. I think she skipped a few houses and did double duty at Christina Hendricks' place.

[TZ]

25. Good on you for admitting it!

I've met an awful lot of guys with this particular "syndrome" who won't come clean!!:rofl: :thumbsup:

[rug]

7. If you find out, please let me know.

[Quantess]

27. I sure hope his unique look earn him a good living as an actor.

That would be justice.

[LeftishBrit]

9. It can be one symptom of social phobia

Though some people who appear to avoid looking at others are simply preoccupied, or have poor peripheral vision.

[madinmaryland]

14. I'm not sure. In NYC, most people avoid looking at faces of strangers.

Unless, if you were a tourist. We could always tell who the tourists were.

[MilesColtrane]

18. In the city it's called self preservation.

I remember a friend who was a recent transplant telling me that he made eye contact with someone on the subway.

The guy followed him for five blocks babbling about how he "knew he was Jesus".

[madinmaryland]

19. Yeah, I remember that guy from the city, along with the guy with the

hand organ on the subway, the guy with the harmonica,....

As long as you had that look like you knew where you were going (even if you didn't) you would get left alone. The City Mentality.

[Lucian]

15. I avoid looking at people's faces...

but that's because I don't want to see them. I try to avoid people as much as I can.

Mainly because I can't stand them.

[RainDog]

16. the other day

I gave this guy a pen to use and he took it and a piece of scrap paper and he started sketching my picture.

it made me so uncomfortable that I couldn't look at it or him... esp. him... and my face, apparently, turned bright red and the guy said I shouldn't be so shy.

then I was sooooooooo embarrassed/uncomfortable BECAUSE I couldn't just stare at him like, you know, so what.

I wasn't always like this. but it's part of a bigger "thing."

and yet, online... I'm also shy and demure. :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[madinmaryland]

20. Are you CreekDog's brother?

:hide:

[RainDog]

23. don't you have a teddy you need to hug?

:)

oh, and does your wife like that you have a butter member now?

[Common Sense Party]

17. Autism

Well, that may just be in my son's case. He HATES eye contact.

[nolabear]

21. No, there is no clinical term for that specific thing. It's a symptom at best.

Could be due to myriad things--shyness, cultural prohibition, various brain function issues that make facial features secondary to other ways of recognizing people, neurotic concerns, etc. etc.

If it worries you or causes you problems, it would be a good idea to talk it over with someone. If not, don't sweat it.

[csziggy]

22. Prosopagnosia is the term for inability to recognize faces

Which I have in a mild form, though I am getting better with age. I do still have trouble recognizing people out of context and have a horrible time associating faces with names especially when I meet people in groups.

[JonLP24]

24. I don't know but that's me

"studiously avoiding looking at the faces of strangers on the street"--Yep. That's me. I also rarely give eye-contact in face-to-face conversations, I do for a second and then feel uncomfortable and look away, still facing the same direction, just not locking eyes with the person. Don't know what's wrong with me.

[Lance_Boyle]

26. gaze avoidance is one of many signs of autism

also social phobia. It is also a solid indicator of a normal healthy person who has ridden the subway a lot.

[BurtWorm]

32. Asperger's maybe?

I mean, people with Asperger's (I think) and autism don't look people in the face. It's not necessarily a studious avoidance. It's involuntary. In autism, this avoidance is rather pronounced.

[Bucky]

33. Uggophobia

[LanternWaste]

34. self delete

self delete... poor taste after reading a few responses.