Insights from computational models of face recognition: A reply to Blauch, Behrmann and Plaut

We agree with Blauch, Behrmann, and Plaut (2020) on a number of points, and are reassured that their data bear out our previous findings. We discuss differences in modelling style, and the usefulness of different types of model for supporting psychological understanding. We emphasise the role that within-person variability plays in recognising familiar faces and clarify the range over which it is idiosyncratic. The combination of image analysis with top-down support to cohere different images of the same person seems to be an important characteristic of successful models.