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The role of movement in the recognition of famous faces

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Abstract

The effects of movement on the recognition of famous faces shown in difficult conditions were investigated. Images were presented as negatives, upside down (inverted), andthresholded. Results indicate that, under all these conditions, moving faces were recognized significantly better than static ones. One possible explanation of this effect could be that a moving sequence contains more static information about the different views and expressions of the face than does a single static image. However, even when the amount of static information was equated (Experiments 3 and 4), there was still an advantage for moving sequences that contained their original dynamic properties. The results suggest that the dynamics of the motion provide additional information, helping to access an established familiar face representation. Both the theoretical and the practical implications for these findings are discussed.

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Correspondence to Karen Lander.

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K.L. was supported by a University of Stirling Ph.D. studentship. V.B.’s research was supported by ESRC Grant R000 23 66 88.

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Lander, K., Christie, F. & Bruce, V. The role of movement in the recognition of famous faces. Mem Cogn 27, 974–985 (1999). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03201228

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