Face Recognition is not Unique: Evidence from Individual Differences

Abstract

An old question in cognitive psychology concerns whether separate systems for processing verbal and visual information should be postulated. In its current form, this issue takes the form of the imagery-propositionalist debate. Imagery theorists propose that visual representations or codes are constructed for certain kinds of events and that these codes are different from codes for verbal events. The propositionalists argue for a common form of representation underlying both visual and verbal events. The proposi-tionalists differ from the behaviorists of an earlier generation in arguing for a more abstract code than inner speech. The present contribution assumes (and will provide evidence for this assumption) that, in some sense, visual and verbal information involve different processes and addresses the question of whether an additional system for processing faces should be assumed.