Discipline and Bias in the Aesthetics of Face Analysis Algorithms:An Empirical Research on AI Values Based on Computer Vision Technology
CHEN Changfeng SHI Wen
Author information+
Chen Changfeng is professor from the School of Journalism and Communication, Tsinghua University. E-mail: fengchen5266@vip.163.com.
Shi Wen is associate professor from the School of Journalism and Communication, Jinan University. E-mail: shiwensmile@163.com.
When artificial intelligence is more widely used for assisting humans in making decisions,the value judgment behavior of algorithms deserves the attention of the academic community. This study focused on the esthetic preference of the face analysis algorithms. We chose intelligent face analysis application Face++ and used 1,247 frontal photos of faces taken in a controlled environment to reverse-test the “beauty evaluation” and “face beautify” algorithms provided by Face++. Research found that the algorithm value judgment inherited social value preference and discipline human beings. The study used computer vision technology to calculate the visual age, thinness, and whiteness of faces, and explored their correlation with the automatic “beauty evaluation” score, and examined whether the “face beautify” algorithm results in significant changes to the above attributes. The results confirmed that the “beauty evaluation” algorithm promotes the aesthetics of “thin, white, and young”, and the “face beautify” algorithm further puts this aesthetic preference into an automated aesthetic practice, strengthening the existing preference. Based on the results above, the research further explores the ideological preference behind the aesthetic value of algorithms, and the operational logic of the interaction between algorithms and human aesthetic practices.
CHEN Changfeng SHI Wen.
Discipline and Bias in the Aesthetics of Face Analysis Algorithms:An Empirical Research on AI Values Based on Computer Vision Technology. Chinese Journal of Journalism & Communication. 2022, 44(3): 6-33