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“As part of getting out of the closure, I think the face covers will be helpful,” Johnson said earlier this month, alleging that the masks will help give the public “confidence that they can go back to work.”
But the prospect of a new society in which the public hides their faces from one another has broad implications for crime and security, as well as social interaction.
“The main problem that people in masks vomit is the large volume of people who suddenly cover their faces,” said Francis Dodsworth, a senior professor of criminology at Kingston University near London. “It could create opportunities for people who want to cover their faces for dire reasons. Now they could do so without raising suspicion.”
Facial recognition becomes a new art.
Experts said the massive use of masks could also complicate crime investigations, as facial recognition becomes an increasingly important part of tracking down criminals.
While humans are very good at recognizing familiar faces, and facial recognition algorithms have improved in pattern identification, masks throw new headaches into the mix.
“Many witnesses are already troublesome,” Dodsworth said. “Even when a group of people witness the same crime, one person will see someone with a mustache and a hat, while another will see someone with a beard and sunglasses.”
The CCTV video is sometimes the only evidence in an investigation, said Eilidh Noyes, a professor of cognitive psychology at the University of Huddersfield in northern England.
“At the moment we don’t know exactly how face masks will affect the accuracy of human face identification or algorithms,” he said.
A Chinese company has already claimed that it has developed software that can accurately identify people, even if they wear masks. However, experts still think that we are far from becoming a standard that can be used in all circumstances.
“I think it is important that if we see claims around a specific algorithm, we don’t apply it to all algorithms because each has its own strengths and weaknesses. We still have a lot more research to do,” Noyes said.
Face concealment creates other problems for law enforcement, particularly when it comes to establishing what constitutes suspicious behavior.
Now, the police will have to make tough judgments about people’s motivations to cover their faces, Dodsworth said.
“What constitutes suspicious behavior is difficult enough to define as it is. The police will have to balance public health advice by justifying arresting someone and looking for them.”
Adapting to new social signals
Of all Covid’s prevention measures, massive face coverage is, at least visibly, one of the most dramatic.
Masks are not mandatory in most Western countries amid fears about human rights concerns and invasion of privacy, and the stigma has generally been against those who wear face covers. It may now change to those who do not.
“People are asked to be alone and suggested to wear masks. Normally, if you walked alone and saw someone wearing a mask, you might be concerned and avoid it. But now it is less clear when and if you are afraid,” he said. Dodsworth.
In the United States, Jorge Elorza, mayor of Providence, Rhode Island, went on to say that citizens should “socially embarrass” the unmasked “so that they align.”
But the fact that violent criminals can exploit wearing masks could make law-abiding citizens nervous. Whether or not someone wants to cause harm, not being able to see someone’s face hides crucial emotional cues that humans depend on for survival.
“When you see a face you do two things at once. You try to discover identity: do I know them? How do I know them? And you try to read their emotions,” Noyes said.
“Emotion recognition is important from an evolutionary perspective, as it helps us assess threats and can also facilitate positive social interactions. That is true for both people we know well and people we have never met.”
If wearing masks goes big, this will inevitably affect the way humans interact and could lead to increased tension among members of the public, with personal security implications.
“For survival reasons, you should know what someone’s intentions are when you meet them. Not being able to do it easily will naturally make people more cautious and defensive, which in some cases could, unfortunately, lead to violent confrontations,” said Ian H. Robertson, professor of psychology at Trinity College Dublin.
Clearly, any move towards a faceless society will be a big problem for Western nations. As Dodsworth said, “initially we can become extremely suspicious of each other.”
“It is not culturally familiar to us and we can adapt by avoiding each other.”
However, he adds that all hope is not lost. “Predatory crimes are increasingly rare and we can find other ways to read each other.”
Kate Gray of the University of Reading, who specializes in emotion processing, said she thought people would probably adapt quickly.
“I think we will quickly get used to picking up social and emotional cues from voice cues or body language,” he said.
So while the wearing of masks has been common for years in some Asian countries, mass acceptance among Westerners will be a big change for citizens who value personal freedoms and are not accustomed to harsh governance.
However, the disposition with which these populations took closure measures suggests that if face coverage becomes common, the herd mentality could spring into action. There will be a new great unknown: How will countries face the populations that are most nervous in the company of others? Suspicious of your fellow citizens?
