Accurate but inefficient: Standard face identity matching tests fail to identify prosopagnosia

Fysh, Matthew C.; Ramon, Meike

doi:10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2021.108119

Cited by 22 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 73 publications

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“…Taken together, on a population level, individual face salience seems to fall on a wide spectrum, with specific groups showing a tendency to cluster at either end rather than differing qualitatively from controls. This resembles the large individual differences reported for face identity processing skills (e.g., Bobak, Jones, Hilker, Mestry, Bate, & Hancock, 2022 ; Fysh & Bindemann, 2018 ; Fysh & Ramon, 2022 ; Fysh et al, 2020 ; Stacchi et al, 2020 ; Stantić et al, 2021 ; Stantić, Ichijo, Catmur, & Bird, 2022 ; Wilmer, 2017 ).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 78%

Characteristic fixation biases in Super-Recognizers

et al. 2022

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Neurotypical observers show large and reliable individual differences in gaze behavior along several semantic object dimensions. Individual gaze behavior toward faces has been linked to face identity processing, including that of neurotypical observers. Here, we investigated potential gaze biases in Super-Recognizers (SRs), individuals with exceptional face identity processing skills. Ten SRs, identified with a novel conservative diagnostic framework, and 43 controls freely viewed 700 complex scenes depicting more than 5000 objects. First, we tested whether SRs and controls differ in fixation biases along four semantic dimensions: faces, text, objects being touched, and bodies. Second, we tested potential group differences in fixation biases toward eyes and mouths. Finally, we tested whether SRs fixate closer to the theoretical optimal fixation point for face identification. SRs showed a stronger gaze bias toward faces and away from text and touched objects, starting from the first fixation onward. Further, SRs spent a significantly smaller proportion of first fixations and dwell time toward faces on mouths but did not differ in dwell time or first fixations devoted to eyes. Face fixation of SRs also fell significantly closer to the theoretical optimal fixation point for identification, just below the eyes. Our findings suggest that reliable superiority for face identity processing is accompanied by early fixation biases toward faces and preferred saccadic landing positions close to the theoretical optimum for face identification. We discuss future directions to investigate the functional basis of individual fixation behavior and face identity processing ability.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 78%

Characteristic fixation biases in Super-Recognizers

et al. 2022

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“…However, we should be cautious making this assumption. For example, acquired prosopagnosia cases can score in the neurotypical range on multiple facial identity tasks (Fysh & Ramon, 2022 ), like what we observe with DP cases. This suggests that the issues we have discussed here may be impacting the acquired prosopagnosia literature too, where cases are excluded from research because they fail to meet conservative criteria on cognitive tasks.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 75%

A new approach to diagnosing and researching developmental prosopagnosia: Excluded cases are impaired too

et al. 2022

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Developmental prosopagnosia is characterized by severe, lifelong difficulties when recognizing facial identity. Unfortunately, the most common diagnostic assessment (Cambridge Face Memory Test) misses 50–65% of individuals who believe that they have this condition. This results in such excluded cases’ absence from scientific knowledge, effect sizes of impairment potentially overestimated, treatment efficacy underrated, and may elicit in them a negative experience of research. To estimate their symptomology and group-level impairments in face processing, we recruited a large cohort who believes that they have prosopagnosia. Matching prior reports, 56% did not meet criteria on the Cambridge Face Memory Test. However, the severity of their prosopagnosia symptoms and holistic perception deficits were comparable to those who did meet criteria. Excluded cases also exhibited face perception and memory impairments that were roughly one standard deviation below neurotypical norms, indicating the presence of objective problems. As the prosopagnosia index correctly classified virtually every case, we propose it should be the primary method for providing a diagnosis, prior to subtype categorization. We present researchers with a plan on how they can analyze these excluded prosopagnosia cases in their future work without negatively impacting their traditional findings. We anticipate such inclusion will enhance scientific knowledge, more accurately estimate effect sizes of impairments and treatments, and identify commonalities and distinctions between these different forms of prosopagnosia. Owing to their atypicalities in visual perception, we recommend that the prosopagnosia index should be used to screen out potential prosopagnosia cases from broader vision research.

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“…Others have reportedly used "any [qualifying test] in the superrecognizer literature" (Phillips et al, 2018), IMPROVING FORENSIC PERPETRATOR IDENTIFICATION WITH SUPER-RECOGNIZERS 6 including e.g. the Glasgow Face Matching Test (Burton, White, & McNeill, 2010), which characteristically providing ceiling effects (Ramon, 2021) and "normal" performance by highly impaired individuals suffering from acquired prosopagnosia (Fysh & Ramon, 2022).…”

Section: Advantages and Limits Of Lab-based Assessment Of Abilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Improving forensic perpetrator identification with Super-Recognizers

Mayer¹,

Ramon²

2022

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About a decade ago, Super-recognizers were first descirbed as individuals with exceptional face identity processing abilities. Since then, various tests have been developed or adapted to assess individuals' face identity processing abilities and identify Super-Recognizers. The extent literature suggests that Super-Recognizers may be beneficial in police tasks concerning individual identification. However, in reality, the performance of Super-Recognizers has never been examined using authentic forensic material. This not only limits external validity of test procedures used to identify Super-Recognizers, but also claims concerning their deployment in policing. Here, we report the first ever investigation of Super-Recognizers' ability in identifying perpetrators using authentic case material. We report the data of 73 Super-Recognizers and 45 control participants on three challenging tests of face identity processing recommended by Ramon (2021), and their performance for perpetrator identification using four CCTV sequences depicting five perpetrators. Our findings demonstrate that face identity processing tests are valid in measuring such abilities and identify Super-Recognizers. Moreover, Super-Recognizers excel at pertrator identification relative to control participants with more correct identifications in the forensic CCTV sequences, the better performance across tests of face identity processing was. These results provide external validity for tests proposed as diagnostic criteria for Super-Recognizer identificiation (Ramon, 2021). They furthermore represent the first empirical evidence that Super-Recognizers identified using these measures can be beneficial for forensic perpetrator identification. We discuss theoretical and practical implications for law enforcement, whose procedures can be improved via a human-centric approach centered around individuals with an innate ability.

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Accurate but inefficient: Standard face identity matching tests fail to identify prosopagnosia

Cited by 22 publications

References 73 publications

Characteristic fixation biases in Super-Recognizers

Characteristic fixation biases in Super-Recognizers

A new approach to diagnosing and researching developmental prosopagnosia: Excluded cases are impaired too

Improving forensic perpetrator identification with Super-Recognizers

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