How old was he? Disguises, age, and race impact upon age estimation accuracy

Abstract

There are many situations in which a person must accurately estimate a stranger's age. For example, a salesperson must accurately estimate the age of a stranger who wishes to purchase age-restricted goods. Information from a stranger's eyes and hair can indicate their likely age. Here, two experiments examined whether adult participants' accuracy when estimating strangers' ages is reduced when the strangers' eyes are disguised by sunglasses and/or hair is disguised by a hat. The strangers' age and race also varied, and participants' social contact with the other age/race groups measured. At best, estimations of undisguised strangers' ages were inaccurate by an average of 5.10 years. Accuracy decreased when the strangers' eyes, but not hair, were disguised and when they came from other age/race groups. Accuracy when estimating other age/race group members' ages and social contact with their members were unrelated. The theoretical and applied implications of these findings are discussed.