| Affiliation: | (1) Department of Psychology, Stockholm University, Frescati Hagväg 14, 10691 Stockholm, Sweden;(2) Centre of Advanced Study, Oslo, Norway;(3) Department of Psychology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden;(4) Aging Research Center, Division of Geriatric Epidemiology, NEUROTEC, Karolinska Institute and Stockholm Gerontology Research Center, Stockholm, Sweden |
| Abstract: | In this study, participants rated previously unseen faces on six dimensions: familiarity, distinctiveness, attractiveness, memorability, typicality, and resemblance to a familiar person. The faces were then presented again in a recognition test in which participants assigned their positive recognition decisions to either remember (R), know (K), or guess categories. On all dimensions except typicality, faces that were categorized as R responses were associated with significantly higher ratings than were faces categorized as K responses. Study ratings for R and K responses were then subjected to a principal components analysis. The factor loadings suggested that R responses were influenced primarily by the distinctiveness of faces, but K responses were influenced by moderate ratings on all six dimensions. These findings indicate that the structural features of a face influence the subjective experience of recognition. |
