Priming studies: a technique to reveal the processes underlying face recognition

Face recognition is subject to two sorts of priming. Repetition priming refers to the fact that it is easier (quicker) to recognise a face if you have recently seen that same face. So, if you see Prince Charles' face, and some time later make a speeded familiar/unfamiliar decision to his face, you will be faster compared to the situation in which you had not seen him first time round. Semantic priming refers to the fact that it is easier (quicker) to recognise someone, if you have just seen someone closely associated. So, if you see Prince Charles' face, you will be quicker to recognise Diana Princess of Wales, compared to the situation in which her face was preceded by someone unassociated.

Psychologists have used these priming effects to explore the structure of the face recognition system. So, for example, it is possible to use the technique to ask "what primes what?". We know, for example, that repetition priming is maximised when the same photo is used as prime and test. However, priming still exists when we change the photo. Other groups have shown that making a sex or expression judgement to face does prime later recognition. These are the types of experiments which are used to constrain our theorising about the structure of face recognition, such as the IAC model.

Places to read about these experiments

• Bruce, V., Burton, A.M., Carson, D., Hanna, E. & Mason, O. (1994). Repetition priming of face recognition. In C. Umilta & M. Moskovitch (Eds.) Attention and Performance XV. pp. 179-210. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press.

 
• Ellis, A.W., Flude, B.M., Young, A.W. & Burton, A.M. (1996). Two loci of repetition priming in the recognition of familiar faces. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning Memory and Cognition, 22, 295-208.

Available on-line as a PostScript file. Press here (792k), or Unix compressed PostScript (85k).
 
• Cabeza, R., Burton. A.M., Kelly, S.W. & Akamatsu, S. (1997). Investigating the relation between imagery and perception: Evidence from face priming. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 50A, 274-289.

 
• Ellis, A.W., Burton, A.M., Young, A.W.& Flude, B.M. (1997). Repetition priming between parts and wholes: Tests of a computational model of familiar face recognition. British Journal of Psychology, 88, 579-608.

 
• Bruce, V., Carson, D., Burton, A.M. & Kelly, S.W. (1998). Prime time advertisements: Repetition priming from faces seen on subjects recruitment posters. Memory and Cognition, 26, 502-515.

 
• Burton, A.M., Kelly, S.W. & Bruce, V. (1998). Cross-domain repetition priming in person recognition. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 51A, 515-529.

 
• Bruce, V., Carson D., Burton, A.M. & Ellis, A.W. (2000). Perceptual priming is not a necessary consequence of semantic classification of pictures. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 53A, 239-323.

• Schweinberger, S.R., Burton, A.M. & Kelly, S.W. (2001).  Priming the access to names of famous faces. British Journal of Psychology, 92, 303-317.

• Carson, D.R. & Burton, A.M. (2001). Semantic priming of person recognition: Categorial priming may be a weaker form of the associative priming effect. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 54A, 1155-1179.