Topic
Face processing research, explained
5 open-access face processing studies, each with a flashcard deck and a quiz.
- How to accurately spot 'super-recognizers' of faces
Many people who excel at memorizing faces are not actually superior at matching unfamiliar faces or spotting them in crowds, meaning standard single-test screenings are insufficient.
- Do masks and sunglasses impair age guessing and face recognition?
Wearing face masks, but not sunglasses, makes people overestimate a stranger's age, while both disguises equally harm your ability to recognize the person later when they are undisguised.
- Can we sense familiarity in faces covered by masks or sunglasses?
People can still sense if a face is familiar even when surgical masks or sunglasses make it impossible to identify who the person is.
- How do East Asians perceive facial expressions?
East Asian participants grouped emotional expressions into three broad categories rather than the six traditional Western categories, despite a computer algorithm recognizing all six.
- How does our ability to detect faces change as we grow up?
As children grow from ages 5 to 10, they develop a selective visual preference for horizontal details when identifying faces, but not when identifying houses.