Integrated processes in person perception: matching novel faces and voices [oral presentation]

A series of studies investigated whether people can match novel faces and voices of the same age (20-30) and sex at a level significantly above chance. The studies also tested whether accuracy is affected by facial stimuli type: static or moving, and the order of stimuli presentation: face first or voice first. In Experiment 1 participants saw a face and heard a voice one after the other. They had to decide whether the stimuli were matching or not matching. When the correct matching stimulus was present participants consistently performed above chance level, regardless of facial stimuli type or stimuli order. When the correct matching stimulus was not present participants were either just guessing (voice first) or significantly below chance (face first). In Experiment 2 and 3 participants had to select the correct matching stimuli in a two-alternative forced choice task. The correct matching stimuli was always present in Experiment 2. It was never present in Experiment 3. Experiments 2 and 3 replicated the results of Experiment 1. Participants in Experiment 2 were more accurate when the correct matching stimulus was present in position 1. Experiment 3 showed that a response bias was operating; participants selected stimulus 1 more often than stimulus 2. However, the bias did not wholly explain the overall above-chance accuracy levels in Experiment 2. This set of results show that people can accurately match novel faces and voices, indicating that faces and voices offer concordant information. Face and voice perception appears to be an integrated process