---
type: source
id: tucciarelli-2022-realness
title: 'On the realness of people who do not exist: The social processing of artificial faces'
authors:
- Raffaele Tucciarelli
- Neza Vehar
- Shamil Chandaria
- Manos Tsakiris
year: 2022
venue: iScience
volume: '25'
pages: null
doi: null
peer_review: peer-reviewed-journal
evidence_tier: B
design: Real-vs-artificial classification plus social trait ratings (incl. trustworthiness)
modality:
- image-face
stimuli: StyleGAN-family faces vs real faces
n_participants: null
n_note: not recorded
topics:
- human-detection
- hyperrealism
- trust
summary: GAN faces were judged as real as, or more real than, real faces; faces rated more trustworthy were more often judged real.
results:
- metric: Realness classification
  value: near chance; artificial often judged real
  note: ''
  source_location: null
- metric: Trust-realness link
  value: positive
  note: more trustworthy → more likely judged real
  source_location: null
moderators: []
limitations:
- Details pending verification
verification:
  status: unverified
  confidence: medium
  checked: null
  via: compiler knowledge; DOI unknown
url: null
pmid: null
pmcid: null
arxiv_id: null
openalex_id: null
oa_url: null
cited_in:
- MR-0001
updated: '2026-10-07'
---

# On the realness of people who do not exist: The social processing of artificial faces

> **Source record** `tucciarelli-2022-realness` · 2022 · iScience  
> **Evidence tier:** B (peer-reviewed-journal) · **Verification:** unverified (compiler confidence: medium)  
> **Bottom line:** GAN faces were judged as real as, or more real than, real faces; faces rated more trustworthy were more often judged real.

## Citation {#citation}

Raffaele Tucciarelli, Neza Vehar, Shamil Chandaria, Manos Tsakiris (2022). On the realness of people who do not exist: The social processing of artificial faces. *iScience*, 25.

Verification entry (identifiers, resolvers, claims with source locations): [/data/citations.json#tucciarelli-2022-realness](/data/citations.json#tucciarelli-2022-realness)

## Study design {#design}

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Design | Real-vs-artificial classification plus social trait ratings (incl. trustworthiness) |
| Modality | image-face |
| Stimuli | StyleGAN-family faces vs real faces |
| Participants (N) | not recorded |
| N detail | not recorded |
| Topics | human-detection, hyperrealism, trust |

## Results {#results}

| Metric | Value | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Realness classification | near chance; artificial often judged real |  |
| Trust-realness link | positive | more trustworthy → more likely judged real |

## Limitations {#limitations}

- Details pending verification

## Cited in {#cited-in}

- [MR-0001](/metareports/human-detection-accuracy.md): Human Detection of Deepfakes: Accuracy, Bias, Confidence, and Training

## Verification {#verification}

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Status | `unverified` |
| Compiler confidence | medium |
| Checked on | — |
| Via | compiler knowledge; DOI unknown |

Values on this page have not all been checked against the full text. Confirm them against the primary source before high-stakes use.