Scientists at Harvard Medical School have discovered that indistinguishability of the face may be a much more common condition than previously thought. The research was published in the journal cortex.
Face blindness (prosopagnosia) is a face discrimination disorder in which a person mistakenly recognizes a person they have never met or is unable to recognize someone they live with in the same household. According to preliminary estimates, this condition affects between 2 and 2.5% of people in the world.
The results of the new study could mean that one in 33 people (3.08% of the world’s population) may have some degree of face blindness.
3341 people participated in the study. The researchers asked the participants if they had difficulty recognizing faces in everyday life. They then performed two objective face recognition tests. The results showed that 31 people had severe prosopagnosia, while 72 people had the milder form.
However, the severity of symptoms varied greatly, suggesting that prosopagnosia may represent a spectrum. Scientists believe that the criteria for diagnosing the disorder should be expanded. This could lead to new diagnoses among millions of people who may unwittingly have the disorder.
Source: Gazeta
Barbara Dickson is a seasoned writer for “Social Bites”. She keeps readers informed on the latest news and trends, providing in-depth coverage and analysis on a variety of topics.