Sex Differences in Memory for Faces

Summary The present study replicates McKelvie's finding that a sex interaction, representing an own-sex effect for females, occurs on facial recognition when Canadian Ss view Canadian faces (Experiment 5), but not British faces (Experiments 1 and 2). In addition, it was shown (Experiments 4 and 5) that the interaction was also absent when Ss were exposed to other faces which did not belong to their peers (photographs of Canadian children, line drawings of adults and children). Finally (Experiment 3), the British faces were rated as less attractive than their Canadian counterparts as a result of the lower ratings assigned to the females. Alternative explanations for these results are considered, and it is argued that the sex-linked interaction emerges when females pay extra attention to female faces and that this is likely when the faces are familiar and relatively attractive.

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