Improving Identity Matching for Masked Faces: The Benefit of Isolated Facial Features.

In two experiments, we investigated ways of improving identity matching for masked perpetrators. Specifically, we evaluated the effectiveness of matching isolated facial features, namely the eyes (Experiment 1) and the mouth (Experiment 2).

Participants viewed pairs of faces and determined whether they belonged to the same person or different individuals. In congruent sets, participants matched a full-face image to another full-face image or a masked image to an isolated feature. In incongruent sets, participants matched a full-face image to an image of the eyes or the mouth only or to a masked image.