Are You Face Blind?

Every mother has experienced The Public Tantrum, when your two-year-old has decided to let you and everyone around you know that she has had enough. I had the pleasure of this experience while shopping at Target with my family. The circumstances that led up to the tantrum are forgotten, I just remember my two-year-old daughter laying face-down in the aisle, screaming and kicking, with me bent-over trying to pick her up so we can sneak out with a little dignity. Just when I thought no one had seen us (of course they had heard us), a women approached me and said, “That is a lovely coat. Where did you find it?”

What? Is she serious? I am wrestling with my child and she wants to discuss fashion. Did she not see the frustration in my face? Two thoughts came to mind:
1.The woman is a seasoned mother who has learned to block out tantrum-throwing children. She has probably mastered the art of having a phone conversation with her friends while her children are screaming in the background.
2.The woman did not see the frustration on my face because she is unable to recognize emotions on the faces of others.

There is a small population (2%) of people out there who are “face blind”. Also known as prosopagnosia, it is the inability to recognize faces. People with prosopagnosia can see and describe the face, including hair color, eye color, and age. Yet they can not tell you if that person is their spouse, child, or even themselves in the mirror. People who are “face blind” use other cues to identify people such as voice or clothing.

Since “face blind” people are unable to identify others based on facial features, it is often difficult for them to identify emotion, since most emotional cues come from the face. Raised eyebrows, frowns, flared nostrils, and squinted eyes are just some of the cues we use to determine if someone is angry, surprised, or scared.

Clearly this disorder can be a major roadblock in socializing with others. Unfortunately there is no cure, although people with prosopagnosia can learn to use other cues to recognize people.

Do you want to test your facial recognition skills? Click here to take the online test from the Prosopagnosia Research Center at Harvard University.

So, the next time someone you have met gives you a blank look when you say hello, or when someone strikes up a conversation with you while you deal with a two-year-old meltdown, you now have a little insight into what the strange social behavior may be.

Your children can also test their skills with the facial recognition test. For younger children, you can print out pictures of their favorite characters online, and test their memory of their favorite faces.