LAUSR

In the forensic face matching task, observers are presented with two unfamiliar faces and must determine whether they depict the same identity. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, some governmental authorities require the use of face masks in public spaces. However, recent research has shown that face masks impair face identification. The present study explores the effect of face masks on forensic face matching using an individual differences approach. Compared to a full-view condition, performance decreased when a face mask was superimposed on one face (Experiment 1) and both faces (Experiment 2) of a pair. Although a positive correlation between the full-view and the mask conditions was found, high proficiency in the full-view condition did not always generalize to the mask condition. Additionally, the mask generally has a more negative impact on those participants with better performance in the full-view condition. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved) Impact Statement General Audience Summary: People working in security settings, such as passport control, are required to compare the picture of an ID card to the face of its bearer. This task is highly challenging even for people with years of experience. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, different governmental authorities require the use of face masks in public spaces. These masks cover the bottom part of the face, entailing a new challenge for face identification. The present study explored whether, how, and to what extent forensic face matching ability is impaired by face masks. Across two experiments, it was found that face masks decreased face matching performance. Additionally, although performance in a full-view condition was positively associated with the performance in a mask condition, high proficiency in the full-view condition did not always generalize to the mask condition. These results highlight the importance of using different conditions when evaluating face identification for personnel selection in applied scenarios. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)