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Within-person face recognition strongly correlates with objective face processing assessments: a study beyond the
Majeed Ali1, Sarina Hui-Lin Chien1,2
1Graduate Institute of Biomedical Sciences, China Medical University, Taichung City, Taiwan.
Royal Society Open Science
|November 17, 2025
Summary
This study explored face recognition across cultures, finding familiarity significantly impacts sorting familiar faces for Taiwanese and Pakistani adults. Better face memory and discrimination correlate with fewer errors in within-person recognition tasks.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Neuroscience
- Cross-cultural Psychology
Background:
- Familiarity is crucial for within-person face recognition.
- Prior research primarily used the Identity Card Sorting task.
- Limited research exists beyond Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic (WEIRD) populations.
Purpose of the Study:
- Investigate links between within-person recognition and other face processing tests.
- Extend face recognition research to Taiwanese and Pakistani populations.
- Examine the familiarity effect in diverse cultural groups.
Main Methods:
- Recruited Taiwanese, Pakistani, and international adult participants.
- Administered Face Identity Sorting, Face Discrimination, Cambridge Face Memory Test (CFMT), and Prosopagnosia Index (PI-20).
- Analyzed performance and correlational relationships between tasks.
Main Results:
- A significant familiarity effect was observed in Face Identity Sorting for Taiwanese and Pakistani groups.
- The International group did not show a significant familiarity effect.
- Card Sorting performance positively correlated with CFMT and Face Discrimination scores, and negatively with PI-20.
Conclusions:
- Familiarity robustly influences within-person face recognition across cultures.
- Strong associations exist between card sorting, face memory, and discrimination abilities.
- This study provides novel insights into face recognition in Pakistani and Taiwanese adults.
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