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The value of whole-face procedures for the construction and naming of identifiable likenesses for recall-based methods of facial-composite construction

  • Charlie D. Frowd
    ,
  • Emma Portch
    ,
  • Alejandro J. Estudillo
    ,
  • Claire J. Ford
    ,
  • Amy Purcell
    ,
  • Melanie Pitchford
  • University of Central Lancashire
    ,
  • Bournemouth University
    ,
  • University of Leeds
Research Output: Contribution to journal Article Peer-review

Open access

Sustainable Development Goals

  • SDG 16 - Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
    SDG 16 Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

Abstract

Traditional methods of facial-composite construction rely on an eyewitness recalling features of an offender's face. We assess the value of the addition of a trait–recall mnemonic to a cognitive-type interview, and perceptually stretching presented composites, to aid image recognition. Participant-constructors intentionally or incidentally encoded a target face, were interviewed about its facial features 3–4 h or 2 days later, made a series of trait attributions (or not) about the face and constructed a feature-based composite. Regardless of encoding manipulation, faces constructed after 3–4 h were twice as likely to be correctly named (cf. after 2 days) both when the trait–recall mnemonic was applied and composites were viewed stretched. Thus, the research indicates that benefit should be afforded when trait–recall mnemonics are employed for feature composites constructed on the same day as the crime and when composites are presented to potential recognisers with instruction to view the face as a perceptual stretch.

Publication Information

Output type

Research Output: Contribution to journal Article Peer-review

Original language

English

Article number

e70015

Journal (Volume, Issue Number)

Applied Cognitive Psychology (Volume 39, Issue 4)

Publication milestones

  • Accepted/In press - 19/11/2024
  • Published - 14/07/2025

Publication status

Published - 14/07/2025

ISSN

0888-4080

External Publication IDs

  • handle.net: 10547/626722
  • Scopus: 105010845271

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