Processing other race faces in tasks without a long term memory component

People are poorer at recognising other race faces, referred to as an own race bias (ORB). This project examined perceptual tasks requiring attention to the identity of faces and access to long-term memory (face matching and detection). A sequential matching task involving own or other race faces showed ORB only on same and not different decisions.

Examining the causes of ORB in relation to configural and featural processing by manipulating the orientation of stimuli, showed that inverting faces increased response latencies, with increase being greater for own race than other race faces. Using whole or part faces in a simultaneous matching task to compare local versus global configural processing, showed that face context is important for own race but not other race faces, suggesting the difference in processing may relate to local configural processing. Face detection viewing Caucasian or Asian faces or non-face stimuli, showed no overall difference in face detection latencies for the two races, while obscuring features of a face affected response latencies to own race but not other race faces. ORB thus influences several tasks not requiring access to long-term memory, showing that previous accounts of ORB based only on access to memorial representations need extending.