Infection Detection: Children Avoid Sick Faces

Abstract

Staying away from germs helps humans stay healthy and avoid dangerous sicknesses. People avoid other people who look or act like they might be feeling sick. For example, adults know when someone is sick just by looking at their face, and they can avoid going near sick people. We wanted to know whether children recognize sick faces. In our study, we asked 4–5-year-olds, 8–9-year-olds, and adults to look at photos of people and decide who was feeling sick and who they wanted to sit next to. Just by looking at the faces, 8–9-year-olds and adults could tell who was feeling sick and said they wanted to sit next to healthy people more than sick people. This study helps us understand that children can recognize and avoid sick faces just like grown-ups can, and that they get better at these skills as they get older.