Abstract
When viewers are shown sets of similar objects (for example circles), they may extract summary information (e.g., average size) while retaining almost no information about the individual items. A similar observation can be made when using sets of unfamiliar faces: Viewers tend to merge identity or expression information from the set exemplars into a single abstract representation, the set average. Here, across four experiments, sets of well-known, famous faces were presented. In response to a subsequent probe, viewers recognized the individual faces very accurately. However, they also reported having seen a merged 'average' of these faces. These findings suggest abstraction of set characteristics even in circumstances which favor individuation of the items. Moreover, the present data suggest that, although seemingly incompatible, exemplar and average representations coexist for sets consisting of famous faces. This result suggests that representations are simultaneously formed at multiple levels of abstraction. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 56-63 |
Number of pages | 8 |
Journal | Cognition |
Volume | 128 |
Issue number | 1 |
Early online date | 13 Apr 2013 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Jul 2013 |
Keywords
- set representation
- ensemble coding
- face
- identity
- averaging
- statistical properties
- ensemble statistics
- rapid extraction
- unfamiliar faces
- representation
- recognition
- attention
- familiar
- images