中国科学院心理研究所机构知识库

已有研究表明,身份对面部表情识别的影响较常见,但表情对面孔身份识别的影响却很罕见。只有个别研究发现了表情对熟悉面孔身份识别的影响。最近有研究使用非常相似的模特面孔图片为实验材料,也发现了表情对身份识别的影响,并提出在以往研究中表情不影响身份识别是因为身份的区分度高于表情的区分度。本研究置疑表情区分度低于身份区分度的必然性,认为过去的研究使用静态表情图片,使得表情自然具有的强度变化线索缺失,才导致表情的区分度相对较低。本研究假设,当表情的强度变化线索得以体现时,表情的区分度就会提高,此时表情识别可能就不会受身份的影响。实验结果支持该假设,证明表情与身份的区分度水平是决定二者识别交互模式的重要因素。表情身份识别之间的相互影响并不能完全证明这两者之间的独立加工关系。此外,研究结果也提示在一定条件下可以部分分离表情与身份信息。

Introduction Since a functional independence was set in the functional model for face recognition （Brace ＆ Young, 1986）, many studies have been conducted to explore the relations between facial expression and facial identity recognition. Some studies supported the opinion of independent processing between facial expression and identity recognition, but the others provided evidences for the opinion of interdependent processing between them. One of the most important pieces of evidence that supported interdependent processing came from the behavior studies, which revealed the intercounection between recognition of facial identity and facial expression. However, in these studies the influence of facial expression on facial identity recognition is hard to be found compared to the influence of identity on expression recognition, especially in unfamiliar face recognition. Recently, Ganel et al. demonstrated the influence of expression on identity by reducing the discriminability of facial identity, and then explained the failure of finding this kind of influence in the past studies. The present study was conducted to challenge the ar^anent that the discriminability of facial expression is lower than that of facial identity. The past studies all neglected the intensity variation information of facial expression although it should be very important to facial expression recognition. We addressed this issue in the present study. We hypothesize that when facial expressions were displayed with intensity varying, the influence of facial expression on identity recognition might disappear. Method To test the hypothesis, two experiments were conducted. In experiment 1, participants were instructed to judge identity or expression of randomly displayed morphing pictures, and the influence between facial identity and expression recognition was examined with reaction time and boundaries as dependent variation. In experiment 2, participants were asked to make judgment along morphing continua, and the influence between facial identity and expression recognition was measured with boundaries as indicator. Results The results of experiment 1 indicated that identity influenced expression recognition but expression did not affect identity judgment, which replicated the results of the previous studies. In experiment 2, the influence of identity on expression recognition disappeared. These results were consistent with our predictions： when facial expressions were displayed with intensity varying, the influence of facial expression on identity recognition would disappear. Conclusion Facial expression intensity cue enhanced the discriminability of facial expression but not that of identity, and then the influence of identity on expression recognition disappeared. Based on these results, we could draw a conclusion that the low discriminability of facial expression could cause the influence of identity on expression recognition. Therefore, the influence of identity on expression recognition must not necessarily support the opinion of independent processing. In addition, the results of present study also provided a possible way to dissociate information of facial identity and expression.

中国科技部973项目(2002CB312103) 国家自然科学基金重点项目(60433030) 国家自然科学基金面上项目(30270466)。