Consolidation, wider reflection, and policy: Response to ‘Super‐recognisers: From the lab to the world and back again’

Abstract

Here, David Robertson and Markus Bindemann respond to a recent BJP Target Article on ‘super‐recognisers’ (SRs). They outline the need to consider human factors that could influence SR performance after selection and the need for a co‐ordinated effort to ensure best practice in the implementation of SRs in applied contexts.

Towards a ‘manifesto’ for super‐recognizer research

“…Together, these responses reflect the vast interest in this topic over recent years and the positive steps that are already underway to address the gap between the laboratory and the world (e.g., in test development; Robertson & Bindemann, 2019;Bate, Portch, Mestry, & Bennetts, 2019;Devue, 2019), including the emergence of collaborative groups comprising academics and experienced face identification practitioners (Moreton, Pike, & Havard, 2019). Together, these responses reflect the vast interest in this topic over recent years and the positive steps that are already underway to address the gap between the laboratory and the world (e.g., in test development; Robertson & Bindemann, 2019;Bate, Portch, Mestry, & Bennetts, 2019;Devue, 2019), including the emergence of collaborative groups comprising academics and experienced face identification practitioners (Moreton, Pike, & Havard, 2019).…”

“…Twelve respected researchers took the time to respond thoughtfully to our article, and to extend the ideas we put forward. Together, these responses reflect the vast interest in this topic over recent years and the positive steps that are already underway to address the gap between the laboratory and the world (e.g., in test development; Robertson & Bindemann, 2019;Bate, Portch, Mestry, & Bennetts, 2019;Devue, 2019), including the emergence of collaborative groups comprising academics and experienced face identification practitioners (Moreton, Pike, & Havard, 2019).…”

“…Second, others shared our specific concerns that the quasi-scientific claims made by commercial organizations and in popular media are likely to exacerbate this problem (Bate et al, 2019;Robertson & Bindemann, 2019). First, there is broad consensus that caution should be exercised in deploying SRs to perform real-world tasks, given the limited level of scientific understanding, and paucity of data on validity and reliability of selection tasks for diverse real-world deployments.…”

“…First, there is broad consensus that caution should be exercised in deploying SRs to perform real-world tasks, given the limited level of scientific understanding, and paucity of data on validity and reliability of selection tasks for diverse real-world deployments. Second, others shared our specific concerns that the quasi-scientific claims made by commercial organizations and in popular media are likely to exacerbate this problem (Bate et al, 2019;Robertson & Bindemann, 2019). Third, there is an unequivocal agreement that closer collaboration between practitioners and academics is required to establish and ensure rigorous and reliable testing practices.…”

“…This should be in service of improving scientific understanding and lead to the betterment of society by achieving measurable practical gains in, for example, policing, rather than serving private interests. Practitioners and scientists have a shared power to achieve such goals and, as pointed out by our peers, should work together to avoid filling this vacuum by private enterprise whose prerogative is a financial gain (see also Robertson & Bindemann, 2019).…”