Do all kids look alike? Evidence for an other-age effect in adults

J Exp Psychol Hum Percept Perform. 2008 Aug;34(4):811-7. doi: 10.1037/0096-1523.34.4.811.

Abstract

The current study provides evidence for the existence of an other-age effect (OAE), analogous to the well-documented other-race effect. Experiments 1 and 2 demonstrate that adults are better at recognizing adult faces compared with faces of newborns and children. Results from Experiment 3 indicate that the OAE obtained with child faces can be modulated by experience. Moreover, in each of the 3 experiments, differences in the magnitude of the observed face inversion effect for each age class of faces were taken to reflect a difference in the processing strategies used to recognize the faces of each age. Evidence from Experiment 3 indicates that these strategies can be tuned by experience. The data are discussed with reference to an experience-based framework for face recognition.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Age Factors
  • Aging / psychology*
  • Attention
  • Child
  • Child, Preschool
  • Face*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Memory
  • Middle Aged
  • Models, Psychological
  • Pattern Recognition, Visual*
  • Racial Groups / psychology
  • Reaction Time
  • Recognition, Psychology*