The impact of misleading information on the identifiability of feature-based facial composites

Abstract

The misinformation effect demonstrates that when eyewitnesses are exposed to details of a crime that are incorrect, they are less accurate in their later recall of those details. Research has also shown that misinformation has a measurable effect on recall and construction of a target face using a mechanical but now-outdated feature-based composite system. In a laboratory-based psychology experiment, we demonstrate that misinformation has a detrimental effect on the construction of a facial composite produced by a modern, computerized feature-based system. Participants were shown a target face and constructed a composite of it the following day using PRO-fit software. Composites were less identifiable when, prior to face construction, participants were exposed to misinformation-in this case, by reading a description of an inaccurate identity: a face that was different to theirs (relative to participants who read a description of the same identity, or did not read a description at all). This is important for criminal justice systems and security services as facial composites constructed under such circumstances would appear to be less identifiable, thus limiting the effectiveness of this type of forensic evidence.