ABSTRACT
In this chapter we provide an overview of how, during the 1970s, demonstrations of outstanding memory for pictures in the laboratory presented a paradox in the context of poor memory for faces shown in miscarriages of justice based on eyewitness testimony and poor performance of early facial composite systems. This triggered the development by psychologists of early conceptual frameworks for understanding how faces are represented and recognised. Such theories have more recently been modified and developed in neuropsychological form. However, some of the key theoretical distinctions made by early ‘functional’ theorists remain forensically relevant today, and yet are still sometimes neglected by researchers and practitioners. Such distinctions include the difference between recognising unfamiliar and familiar faces; the distinction between ‘resemblance’ and ‘identity’ and the influence of context on person identification. In this chapter we review such issues and consider their methodological and practical impact.
