Face Perception

Human faces are unique biological structures that convey a complex variety of important social messages. Even strangers can tell things from our faces – our feelings, our locus of attention, something of what we are saying, our age, sex, and ethnic group, whether they find us attractive or approachable.

Face Perception, second edition, has been thoroughly updated throughout, providing an up-to-date, integrative summary by two authors who have helped to develop and shape the field. The book begins with the foundations of face perception before considering what is known about how we see different things in faces. It concludes with a discussion of how face perception relates to wider questions involving interpersonal perception and re-examines the question of what makes faces ‘special’. The importance of integrating different research perspectives and asking critical theoretical questions is emphasised throughout, to develop a distinctive point of view of the area.

Written in a clear and accessible style, this is invaluable reading for all students and researchers interested in studying face perception and social cognition.

Andy Young and Vicki Bruce are Emeritus Professors at the Universities of York and Newcastle, respectively, in the United Kingdom. Both have published extensively on scientific studies of face perception since the 1970s.