When Your Brain Doesn’t Recognize Faces
The science behind ‘face blindness’
Much of human engagement relies upon the ability to recognize familiar faces. And yet this seemingly simple, widespread human capacity, which builds and strengthens social bonds, is not a given for everyone.
People with “face blindness”— known as prosopagnosia (from the Greek words for “face” and “without knowledge”) — find it difficult, and sometimes impossible, to recognize best friends, family members, and even themselves. A 2016 review in Eye and Brain noted that although it’s often linked to brain damage resulting from trauma, face blindness can also be passed down in families and found in children.
British actor Stephen Fry describes how despite being deep in conversation with a new colleague, an hour later, he is often unable to recognize who they are. Describing his condition in an interview with the BBC, Fry says it has made social events difficult for him, as he regularly fails to identify co-workers, high-profile celebrities, and even close friends.
In even more extreme cases, the condition can be socially crippling. In her book, You Don’t Look Like Anyone I Know, Heather Sellers describes how, as a child, she became temporarily lost in a grocery store. When reunited with her mother, the staff were confused about why a child…
