Face matching and metacognition: investigating individual differences and a training intervention

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Psychology
• Neuroscience

Background:

• Metacognitive insight in face matching is under-researched.
• Understanding the mechanisms of metacognitive insight is crucial for face recognition studies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if objective and self-assessed abilities predict metacognitive performance in face matching.
• To examine the impact of a training intervention on face matching ability and metacognitive insight.

Main Methods:

• 220 participants completed a face matching task.
• A diagnostic feature training or control course was administered.
• Objective and self-assessed abilities were measured; metacognitive performance was assessed via confidence ratings.

Main Results:

• Higher objective and self-assessed face matching abilities correlated with better metacognitive performance.
• The training intervention did not enhance face matching performance or metacognitive ability.

Conclusions:

• Competence in face matching is linked to metacognitive insight.
• Further research is needed to fully understand the mechanisms behind individual differences in metacognitive insight during face matching.