Predicting personality or prejudice? Facial inference in the age of artificial intelligence

Abstract

Facial inference, a cornerstone of person perception, has traditionally been studied through human judgments about personality traits and abilities based on people's faces. Recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI) have introduced new dimensions to this field, employing machine learning algorithms to reveal people's character, capabilities, and social outcomes based just on their faces. This review examines recent research on human and AI-based facial inference across psychology, business, computer science, legal, and policy studies to highlight the need for scientific consensus on whether or not people's faces can reveal their inner traits, and urges researchers to address the critical concerns around epistemic validity, practical relevance, and societal welfare before recommending AI-based facial inference for consequential uses.