Dr James Dunn

Dr James Dunn

Lecturer

BSc(Adv) (Psyc), UNSW Sydney, Sydney (2012)

Ph.D., UNSW Sydney, Sydney (2018)

Science
School of Psychology

James Dunn is a ARC DECRA Research Fellow (Lecturer) in the School of Psychology at UNSW Sydney. Current areas of interest include face and person recognition, forensic science and individual differences with both applied and theory-inspired research using behavioural methods, machine learning and eye-tracking.

He is also a Pact for Impact School Champion (Psychology) and member of the Psychology Equity, Diversity & Inclusion team. 

Previous and current research projects: person-in-crowd identification, the strategies supporting superior face identification accuracy, and contextual influences on face identification.

Phone
+61-2-9065-1425
Location
Mathews Building Room 1004
  • Journal articles | 2024
    Dunn JD; Miellet S; White D, 2024, 'Information sampling differences supporting superior face identity processing ability', Psychonomic Bulletin and Review, pp. 1 - 11, http://dx.doi.org/10.3758/s13423-024-02579-0
    Journal articles | 2024
    Dunn JD; Towler A; Popovic B; de Courcey A; Lee N-Y; Kemp RI; Miellet S; White D, 2024, 'Flexible Use of Facial Features Supports Face Identity Processing', Journal of Experimental Psychology Human Perception & Performance, 50, pp. 1143 - 1153, http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/xhp0001242
    Journal articles | 2024
    Growns B; Dunn JD; Helm RK; Towler A; Mattijssen EJAT; Martire KA, 2024, 'Jack of all trades, master of one: domain-specific and domain-general contributions to perceptual expertise in visual comparison', Cognitive Research: Principles and Implications, 9, pp. 73, http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s41235-024-00596-0
    Journal articles | 2023
    Dunn JD; Towler A; Kemp RI; White D, 2023, 'Selecting police super-recognisers', PLoS ONE, 18, pp. e0283682, http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0283682
    Journal articles | 2023
    Miellet S; Dunn JD; Varela VPL; Popovic B; Summersby S; White D, 2023, 'The computational value of face information sampled by super-recognizers', Journal of Vision, 23, pp. 4744 - 4744, http://dx.doi.org/10.1167/jov.23.9.4744
    Journal articles | 2023
    Tagliente S; Passarelli M; D'Elia V; Palmisano A; Dunn JD; Masini M; Lanciano T; Curci A; Rivolta D, 2023, 'Self-reported face recognition abilities moderately predict face-learning skills: Evidence from Italian samples', Heliyon, 9, pp. e14125, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e14125
    Journal articles | 2023
    Towler A; Dunn JD; Castro Martínez S; Moreton R; Eklöf F; Ruifrok A; Kemp RI; White D, 2023, 'Diverse types of expertise in facial recognition', Scientific Reports, 13, pp. 11396, http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-28632-x
    Journal articles | 2023
    2023, 'Corrigendum to “Self-reported face recognition abilities moderately predict face-learning skills: Evidence from Italian samples” [Heliyon 9 (3) (March 2023) Article e14125] (Heliyon (2023) 9(3), (S2405844023013324), (10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e14125))', Heliyon, 9, pp. e15217 - e15217, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e15217
    Journal articles | 2022
    Dunn JD; Varela VPL; Nicholls VI; Papinutto M; White D; Miellet S, 2022, 'Face-Information Sampling in Super-Recognizers', Psychological Science, 33, pp. 1615 - 1630, http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/09567976221096320
    Journal articles | 2022
    Growns B; Dunn JD; Helm RK; Towler A; Kukucka J, 2022, 'The low prevalence effect in fingerprint comparison amongst forensic science trainees and novices', PLoS ONE, 17, pp. e0272338, http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0272338
    Journal articles | 2022
    Growns B; Dunn JD; Mattijssen EJAT; Quigley-McBride A; Towler A, 2022, 'Match me if you can: Evidence for a domain-general visual comparison ability', Psychonomic Bulletin and Review, 29, pp. 866 - 881, http://dx.doi.org/10.3758/s13423-021-02044-2
    Journal articles | 2022
    Growns B; Towler A; Dunn JD; Salerno JM; Schweitzer NJ; Dror IE, 2022, 'Statistical feature training improves fingerprint-matching accuracy in novices and professional fingerprint examiners', Cognitive Research: Principles and Implications, 7, pp. 60, http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s41235-022-00413-6
    Journal articles | 2022
    Trinh A; Dunn JD; White D, 2022, 'Verifying unfamiliar identities: Effects of processing name and face information in the same identity-matching task', Cognitive Research: Principles and Implications, 7, pp. 92, http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s41235-022-00441-2
    Journal articles | 2021
    Dunn JD; Kemp RI; White D, 2021, 'Top-down influences on working memory representations of faces: Evidence from dual-target visual search', Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 74, pp. 1368 - 1377, http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/17470218211014357
    Journal articles | 2021
    Dunn JD; Nicholls VI; Papinutto M; Varela VPL; White D; Miellet S, 2021, 'Visual information sampling of faces by super-recognisers', Journal of Vision, 21, pp. 2327, http://dx.doi.org/10.1167/jov.21.9.2327
    Journal articles | 2020
    Dunn JD; Summersby S; Towler A; Davis JP; White D, 2020, 'UNSW Face Test: A screening tool for super-recognizers', PLoS ONE, 15, pp. e0241747, http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0241747
    Journal articles | 2019
    Dunn JD; Ritchie KL; Kemp RI; White D, 2019, 'Familiarity does not inhibit image-specific encoding of faces', Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 45, pp. 841 - 854, http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/xhp0000625
    Journal articles | 2019
    Towler A; Kemp RI; Bruce V; Burton AM; Dunn JD; White D, 2019, 'Are face recognition abilities in humans and sheep really 'comparable'?', Royal Society Open Science, 6, pp. 180772, http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsos.180772
    Journal articles | 2019
    Towler A; Kemp RI; Mike Burton A; Dunn JD; Wayne T; Moreton R; White D, 2019, 'Do professional facial image comparison training courses work?', PLoS ONE, 14, pp. e0211037, http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0211037
    Journal articles | 2018
    Dunn J; Kemp R; White D, 2018, 'Search templates that incorporate within-face variation improve visual search for faces', Cognitive Research: Principles and Implications, 3, pp. 1 - 11, http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s41235-018-0128-1
    Journal articles | 2015
    White D; Dunn JD; Schmid AC; Kemp RI, 2015, 'Error rates in users of automatic face recognition software', PLoS ONE, 10, http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0139827
  • Preprints | 2024
    Dunn JD; Towler A; Popovic B; de Courcey A; Lee N-Y; Kemp R; Miellet S; White D, 2024, Flexible use of facial features supports face identity processing, http://dx.doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/c7yfu
    Preprints | 2024
    Growns B; Dunn JD; Mattijssen E; Helm R; Towler A; Martire K, 2024, Jack of all trades, master of one: Domain-specific and domain-general contributions to perceptual expertise in visual comparison, http://dx.doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/k7ehp
    Preprints | 2024
    Popovic B; Dunn JD; Towler A; White D, 2024, Normative face recognition ability test scores vary across online participant pools, http://dx.doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/52k7w
    Preprints | 2023
    Dunn JD; de Lima Varela VP; Popovic B; Summersby S; White D; Miellet S, 2023, Superior computational value of face information sampled by super-recognizers, , http://dx.doi.org/10.31219/osf.io/3h5uj
    Conference Abstracts | 2023
    Miellet S; Dunn JD; Varela VPL; Popovic B; Summersby S; White D, 2023, 'The computational value of face information sampled by super-recognizers', in Journal of Vision, Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO), Vol. 23, pp. 4744 - 4744, presented at Vision Sciences Society Annual Meeting 2023, http://dx.doi.org/10.1167/jov.23.9.4744
    Preprints | 2021
    Towler A; Dunn JD; Martínez SC; Moreton R; Eklöf F; Ruifrok A; Kemp R; White D, 2021, Diverse routes to expertise in facial recognition, http://dx.doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/fmznh
    Reports | 2020
    White D; Towler A; Jeffery L; Kemp R; Palermo R; Ballantyne K; Curby K; Edmond G; Martire K; O'Toole A; Phillips J; San Roque M; Wilmer J; Carter T; Dunn J; Tullberg C; Ferguson D; Geach J; Heyer R; Michalski D; Moreton R; Noyes E; Ritchie K; Sutherland C, 2020, Evaluating face identification expertise: Turning theory into practice, https://socialsciences.org.au/workshop/evaluating-face-identification-expertise-turning-theory-into-practice/

Australian Research Council (ARC)  Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA) - 2025-2028

Office of National Intelligence - National Intelligence Postdoctoral Grant (CI-A) - 2023-2025

Community, Health & Safety, and Wellbeing Impact Award - 2023

UNSW Science Early Career Academic Award - 2021

UNSW Science ECAN Seeding Grant - 2020

UNSW Science PhD Writing Scholarship - 2018

Outstanding Research Student Award - 2017

UNSW Science Postgraduate Research Competition School of Psychology Prize - 2016

UNSW Science Postgraduate Research Competition Competition Winner - 2015

Dunn, J. D., Towler, A., Kemp, R. I., & White, D. (2023). Selecting police super-recognisers. PLoS One, 18(5), e0283682. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0283682 

Towler, A., Dunn, J. D., Castro Martinez, S., Moreton, R., Eklof, F., Ruifrok, A., Kemp, R. I., & White, D. (2023). Diverse types of expertise in facial recognition. Sci Rep, 13(1), 11396. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-28632-x 

Tagliente, S., Passarelli, M., D’Elia, V., Palmisano, A., Dunn, J. D., Masini, M., Lanciano, T., Curci, A., & Rivolta, D. (2023). Self-reported face recognition abilities moderately predict face-learning skills: Evidence from Italian samples. Heliyon, 9(3). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e14125 

Dunn, J. D., Varela, V. P. L., Nicholls, V. I., Papinutto, M., White, D., & Miellet, S. (2022). Visual information sampling in super-recognizers. Psychological Science. 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1177/09567976221096320

Growns, B., Dunn, J. D., Mattijssen, E., Quigley-McBride, A., & Towler, A. (2022). Match me if you can: Evidence for a domain-general visual comparison ability. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13423-021-02044-2

Growns, B., Dunn, J. D., Helm, R. K., Towler, A., & Kukucka, J. (2022). The low prevalence effect in fingerprint comparison amongst forensic science trainees and novices. PLoS One, 17(8), e0272338. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0272338 

Trinh, A., Dunn, J. D., & White, D. (2022). Verifying unfamiliar identities: Effects of processing name and face information in the same identity-matching task. Cogn Res Princ Implic, 7(1), 92. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41235-022-00441-2 

Growns, B., Towler, A., Dunn, J. D., Salerno, J. M., Schweitzer, N. J., & Dror, I. E. (2022). Statistical feature training improves fingerprint-matching accuracy in novices and professional fingerprint examiners. Cogn Res Princ Implic, 7(1), 60. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41235-022-00413-6 

Dunn, J. D., Kemp, R. I., & White, D. (2021). Top-down influences on working memory representations of faces: Evidence from dual-target visual search. Q J Exp Psychol (Hove), 74(8), 1368-1377. https://doi.org/10.1177/17470218211014357

Dunn, J. D., Summersby, S., Towler, A., Davis, J. P., & White, D. (2020). UNSW Face Test: A screening tool for super-recognizers. PLoS One, 15(11), e0241747. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0241747

Dunn, J. D., Ritchie, K. L., Kemp, R. I., & White, D. (2019). Familiarity does not inhibit image-specific encoding of faces. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 45(7), 841-854. doi:10.1037/xhp0000625

Towler, A, Kemp, R. I., Burton, A. M., Dunn, J.D., Wayne, T., Moreton, R., White, D. (2019). Do professional facial image comparison training courses work? PLoS One, 14(2), e0211037. https://doi.org/ 10.1371/journal.pone.0211037

Towler, A., Kemp, R. I., Bruce, V., Burton, A. M., Dunn, J. D., & White, D. (2019). Are face recognition abilities in humans and sheep really ‘comparable’? R. Soc. open sci., 6, 180772. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsos.180772

Dunn, J. D., Kemp, R. I., & White, D. (2018). Search templates that incorporate within-face variation improve visual search for faces. Cognitive Research: Principles and Implications, 3(37), 1-11. doi:10.1186/s41235-018-0128-1

White, D., Dunn, J. D., Schmid, A. C., & Kemp, R. I. (2015). Error Rates in Users of Automatic Face Recognition Software. PLoS One, 10(10), e0139827. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0139827

My Research Supervision

Daniel Chu

My Teaching

PSYC1027 - Forensic Psychology: Crime, Courts and Corrections