Bruce et al - The Importance Of External And Internal Features In Facial Recognition Flashcards
What are internal features?
Eyes, eyebrows, nose and mouth
What was the aim of Bruce et al’s research?
To investigate the relative recognisability of internal and external features in facial recognition
What are external features?
Head shape, hair and ears
What method was used?
Laboratory experiments using volunteers
In the first experiment, how many participants were there?
30 (Staff and students from Stirling University)
In experiment 1, what were participants shown?
10 target photos of celebrities and 40 composite images produced by E-fit
What were the 3 groups in the first experiment?
Group 1 (Complete composites), Group 2 (Composites of only internal features) and Group 3 (Composites of only external features)
In the second experiment, what was the sample?
48 undergraduates from Stirling University
In experiment 2, what were participants shown?
An array of celebrity faces that had been made either easy or difficult to discriminate
In experiment 2, what were participants required to do?
Match the celebrity face to its composite
In experiment 1, what percentage of the complete composites were matched to the internal features compared to the external features?
35% of the complete composites were matched to external features compared to only 19.5% of internal features
In experiment 2, what percentage of external features were correctly identified in comparison to internal features?
42% for external features but only 24% for internal features
What was concluded from these findings?
That external features are more important for facial recognition
