Abstract
Several previous studies have stressed the importance of configural information in face
recognition. In this study the perception of configural information was investigated.
Using the method of adjustment Experiment 1 revealed that the inter-eye distance is
overestimated by 15 percent and the eye-mouth distance by more than 30 percent. In
Experiment 2 this effect was replicated using a different set of stimuli. In Experiment 3
several possible explanations were tested: Horizontal vertical illusion, Muller-Lyer illusion,
Oppel-Kundt illusion, context effects, Pragnanz effect, and the role of surface information.
Experiment 4 consisted of a replication in which a face and a line drawing was
used in order to test for surface based face specific effects. The results of these four
experiments suggest an important role of well-known perceptual illusions for the explanation
of the large overestimation of configural information in faces.
