Understanding how we perceive faces requires studying the full spectrum of human ability—from those who cannot recognize even familiar faces (prosopagnosia) to those with extraordinary face recognition skills (super recognizers). These individuals provide a unique window into the mechanisms that underlie one of our most socially vital cognitive functions.
While super recognizers reveal what highly efficient face processing looks like, prosopagnosics help us understand where and how this system can break down. Together, they offer complementary insights into the brain’s face-processing architecture—how we extract identity, rely on context, and integrate features into meaningful perception.
By studying these abilities in the diverse cultural and perceptual landscape of India, we aim to uncover how face recognition varies across individuals and environments. We also aim to help diagnose and treat what could be a very large population of Indians who might be affected by prosopagnosia.
Prosopagnosia, also known as face blindness, is a condition where a person has trouble recognizing faces. It’s not about poor memory or bad eyesight — people with face blindness may see faces clearly, but they can’t tell one face from another easily. Some may not even recognize close family members, friends, or their own reflection in the mirror. There are two main types:
Developmental Prosopagnosia: This form is present from early life. The brain just never develops the ability to recognize faces like most people do.
Acquired Prosopagnosia: This happens after brain damage from events like a stroke or head injury.
Super Recognizers are people with an exceptional knack for remembering and identifying faces. They can spot a face they’ve only seen once, even after years, or pick someone out from a blurry image or a crowded scene. This natural ability sets them apart from most of us—and even from some trained professionals. Super recognizers tend to focus on faces quickly and instinctively, noticing subtle details that others might miss. While they still share some of the same challenges we all face—like finding it harder to recognize faces of other ethnicities—their talent for recognizing people could make them incredibly valuable in areas like security, law enforcement, and research.
We will study face perception by administering a culturally adapted Indian Face Memory Test (IFMT), to a large sample of participants, followed by clinical evaluation by qualified professionals to confirm cases of prosopagnosia or super recognition. The primary aim is to understand the fundamental processes involved in face perception, and identify which aspects function atypically or exceptionally in individuals with face processing deficits or strengths. In addition to face memory testing, we will assess a range of cognitive abilities such as attention, working memory, cognitive control, and social cognition, to explore how these functions relate to face processing performance. This integrated approach will help reveal the broader cognitive profile associated with face blindness and face recognition expertise.
Community Sampling: A grassroots approach will engage diverse communities, ensuring representation across age, socioeconomic status, and education for ecologically valid insights.
Comprehensive Assessment: Age-appropriate, culturally adapted tasks will assess face perception ability along with attention, memory, executive function, and social cognition, providing a detailed cognitive profile of the participants.
Social Impact: The project will offer post-diagnostic care and counseling, use data-driven methods to reclassify face perception deficits, and design tailored cognitive interventions and training to support individual needs.
Public Awareness: Scientific findings will be published in high-impact international journals and presented at conferences, talks, and workshops.
Dr. Vaishnavi Mohite – Postdoctoral Researcher & Principal Investigator (vaishnavim@iisc.ac.in)
Prof. SP Arun – Principal Investigator (sparun@iisc.ac.in)
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Join us in uncovering how face perception shapes identity, memory, and connection across India.
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Recent research suggests that around 2% of the population (that’s about 1 in 50 people) may have some form of developmental or congenital prosopagnosia. That means millions of people around the world live with face blindness, often without even knowing it.
What’s surprising is that many people with the condition go undiagnosed. Since they’ve had trouble recognizing faces for as long as they can remember, they often assume it's just part of their personality — that they’re “bad with faces” or simply “not very observant.” Others find clever ways to compensate, like remembering hairstyles, glasses, or clothing styles, so the issue may never come to light unless tested.
There’s also a hereditary version of face blindness that runs in families. If one family member has trouble recognizing faces, chances are that others in the family may experience the same issue.
While face blindness is still not widely known among the general public, awareness is growing — and more people are starting to recognize the signs in themselves or their loved ones.
There are two forms of prosopagnosia, and the symptoms depend on the form. The two forms are apperceptive and associative:
Apperceptive prosopagnosia: This is when you can’t recognize a person’s facial expressions or other non-verbal cues.
Associative prosopagnosia: This form is when you can’t recognize a person’s face even if you’re familiar with them. You can still recognize them by other means, like their voice or the sound of how they walk.
No matter the type, people with face blindness often experience:
Difficulty recognizing familiar faces, even those they see regularly.
Trouble following movies or shows, especially when characters look similar.
Confusing strangers with people they know — or not recognizing someone they’ve just met.
Avoiding social situations to prevent awkward encounters or embarrassment.
Anxiety about accidentally ignoring someone or appearing rude.
Needing context clues (like location or clothing) to figure out who someone is.
Rarely, difficulties in recognizing places or navigating spaces (in some developmental cases).
People with prosopagnosia usually have normal vision and intelligence — their brain simply processes facial identity in a different way.
Face blindness (prosopagnosia) can be acquired later in life or be present from birth.
Acquired Prosopagnosia
This occurs after brain damage, often due to:
Stroke
Head injury
Dementia or Alzheimer’s disease
Brain tumors
Lack of oxygen to the brain (cerebral hypoxia)
Infections like encephalitis
Seizures or epilepsy
Exposure to toxins (e.g., carbon monoxide)
These conditions can damage areas in the brain — especially in the occipital and temporal lobes — that are critical for face recognition.
Developmental (Congenital) Prosopagnosia
This form is present from early life, without any clear brain injury. It’s often genetic and tends to run in families, though some cases involve spontaneous (de novo) gene mutations.
Researchers have also found possible links between congenital prosopagnosia and developmental conditions like autism, though more studies are needed to confirm this.
No, face blindness (prosopagnosia) is not contagious. You can’t catch it from someone else. However, certain infections — like encephalitis — can damage the brain and lead to acquired prosopagnosia. Even then, having such an infection doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll develop the condition.
There is currently no direct cure for prosopagnosia. In cases of acquired prosopagnosia, treating the underlying cause (like a tumor, stroke, or infection) may lead to some improvement, but full recovery is rare.
For people with congenital prosopagnosia (present from birth), the condition is usually lifelong. However, many people learn to manage it effectively through training and strategies.
While it can’t be cured, there are effective ways to cope with prosopagnosia.
Perceptual training: This method teaches individuals to focus on specific facial features, such as eye shape or mouth position, to improve face recognition. It can also help with identifying facial expressions, especially for those who struggle to read emotions (a symptom of apperceptive prosopagnosia).
Coping strategies: These include learning to recognize people using non-facial cues like voice, hairstyle, clothing, body language, or context. Strengthening these skills can significantly reduce the daily challenges of face blindness.
With support, many people with prosopagnosia can lead independent and socially active lives, even if recognizing faces remains difficult.