Personality Judgments from Natural and Composite Facial Images: More Evidence For A “Kernel Of Truth” In Social Perception

Abstract

In addition to signaling identity, sex, age, and emotional state, people frequently use facial characteristics as a basis for personality attributions. Typically, there is a high degree of consensus in the attributions made to faces. Nevertheless, the extent to which such judgments are veridical is unclear and somewhat controversial. We have examined the relationship between self-report and perceived personality using both faces of individuals and computer graphic composites. Photographs were taken of 146 men and 148 women who each also completed a self-report personality questionnaire from which scores on the big five personality dimensions were derived. In study 1, we identified a relationship between self-reported extraversion and perceived extraversion in individual faces. For male faces alone, we also found some accuracy in the perception of emotional stability and openness to experience. In study 2, composite faces were made from individuals self-reporting high and low scores on each of the five dimensions. These composites were rated for personality and attractiveness by independent raters. Discriminant analyses indicated that, controlling for attractiveness, independent ratings on congruent personality dimensions were best able to discriminate between composite faces generated 607

First impressions: Gait cues drive reliable trait judgements

“…The lack of a relationship between observer ratings and self-reported personality scores contrasts with studies reporting a Kernel of Truth in ratings of personality traits (Borkenau, et al, 2004;Penton-Voak, et al, 2006). Accurate and early decisions of traits such as neuroticism can be considered advantageous since prediction of immediate behaviour carries an adaptive advantage (Barrett, et al, 2005).…”

“…This approach is the most common for studies that assess the Kernel of Truth hypothesis (Borkenau & Liebler, 1992;Borkenau, et al, 2004;Penton-Voak, et al, 2006). The Big Five scores from the NEO FFI SF (Costa & McCrae, 1992) -administered to targets prior to the motion capture procedure -were used as self-reported traits, and these were evaluated in relation to their corresponding rating scales from the observers (see 2.1.1).…”

“…Whilst some studies report a 'kernel of truth' in trait impressions (Berry, 1990;Borkenau, Mauer, Riemann, Spinath, & Angleitner, 2004;Penton-Voak, Pound, Little, & Perrett, 2006), plenty of evidence points towards unrelated, and often transient, cues driving personality judgments, such as physical attractiveness (Dion, Berscheid, & Walster, 1972;Feingold, 1992;Jones, Little, Burt, & Perrett, 2004) or emotions (Knutson, 1996;Montepare & Dobish, 2003), which shows that people are not infallible in their judgments. However, consensus at zero acquaintance remains an interesting topic of study independent of the Kernel of Truth hypothesis and the lack of accuracy by no means diminishes the importance of our study.…”

Changing the personality of a face: Perceived Big Two and Big Five personality factors modeled in real photographs.

“…We are only aware of one study that found inter-rater agreement in Big Five judgments from photographs of faces (Penton-Voak, Pound, Little, & Perrett, 2006). Because photographs show extra-facial information, we do not know whether agreement is based upon facial or extra-facial styling information.…”

“…Different attempts at investigating accuracy of personality judgments from facial photographs (Kramer & Ward, 2010;Little & Perrett, 2007;Penton-Voak et al, 2006) the modeling approach applied here in that it visualizes actual personality dimensions instead of the ideas or stereotypes of personality dimensions, but also in it's applicability to generate face CHANGING THE PERSONALITY OF A FACE 12 stimuli. On the one hand it does not allow for systematic and gradual manipulations of the salience of a specific personality dimension, on the other hand, it cannot be applied to novel faces.…”