Source memory for faces is determined by their emotional evaluation.

Abstract

Previous research (Buchner, Bell, Mehl, & Musch, 2009) has shown that source memory for faces of cheaters, that is, memory for the cheating context in which these faces were encountered, is enhanced in comparison with source memory for faces of persons described as trustworthy. Experiment 1 shows that the source memory advantage for faces of cheaters is abolished when the cheating is of low, and the trustworthy behavior is of high, a priori valence and arousal, such that both types of behavior elicit similarly strong emotional reactions toward the stimulus persons. Experiment 2 shows that source memory for faces of perpetrators, but not of victims, is enhanced, even though a priori valence and arousal did not differ between perpetrator and victim descriptions. However, only perpetrator behavior is other-relevant, thus implying direct negative consequences for others, which elicits comparatively strong emotional reactions toward the stimulus person. Together, the findings suggest that source memory for faces of cheaters and of faces associated with trustworthy behavior is primarily determined by the emotional reaction toward the faces at encoding.