Accuracy of eyewitness testimony: Misleading information Flashcards
What is eyewitness testimony?
Eyewitness testimony is the account given by people who have witnessed an event, used as evidence in legal proceedings.
True or False: Eyewitness testimony is always reliable.
False
What is misleading information?
Misleading information refers to information that is inaccurate or distorted, which can affect memory recall.
Fill in the blank: The study by Loftus and Palmer (1974) investigated the effects of _____ on memory.
misleading questions
What was the main finding of Loftus and Palmer’s study?
The wording of questions can significantly alter a witness’s memory of an event.
What is the misinformation effect?
The misinformation effect occurs when a person’s memory of an event is altered by misleading information presented after the event.
Which type of question is more likely to lead to inaccurate eyewitness recall?
Leading questions
True or False: The confidence of an eyewitness is a good predictor of accuracy.
False
What is the role of post-event information in eyewitness testimony?
Post-event information can distort a witness’s memory and lead to inaccuracies.
What does the term ‘source confusion’ refer to?
Source confusion refers to the inability to correctly identify the source of a memory, leading to inaccuracies.
Fill in the blank: The _____ hypothesis suggests that memory is reconstructive rather than reproductive.
reconstructive
What impact does stress have on eyewitness memory?
High stress can impair memory accuracy and recall.
True or False: Older adults are less susceptible to misleading information.
False
What is the cognitive interview technique?
The cognitive interview technique is a method used to enhance the recall of witnesses by using various strategies to improve memory retrieval.
List one advantage of using a cognitive interview.
It can lead to more accurate and detailed eyewitness accounts.
What is the effect of repeated questioning on eyewitness testimony?
Repeated questioning can lead to memory contamination and increased inaccuracies.
True or False: All eyewitnesses remember events in the same way.
False
What is the purpose of using filler questions in interviews?
Filler questions are used to reduce the pressure on the witness and encourage more natural recall.
What is the ‘weapon focus’ effect?
The weapon focus effect refers to the tendency of witnesses to concentrate on a weapon during a crime, impairing their ability to recall other details.
Fill in the blank: _____ refers to the phenomenon where a witness’s memory is influenced by the information provided by others.
Social contagion
What are leading questions?
Leading questions are questions that suggest a particular answer or contain information that may influence the response.
What is the role of schemas in memory recall?
Schemas are mental frameworks that help organize and interpret information, but they can also lead to distortions in memory.
True or False: Eyewitnesses are generally accurate in their identification of suspects.
False
What is the relationship between attention and memory accuracy?
Higher levels of attention during an event typically lead to better memory accuracy.
What does the term ‘retrieval failure’ mean?
Retrieval failure refers to the inability to access stored information, often due to a lack of retrieval cues.
What was the main conclusion of the study by Gabbert et al. (2003)?
Witnesses who discussed an event after it occurred were more likely to incorporate incorrect information into their memories.
Fill in the blank: The _____ effect occurs when misleading information alters the memory of an event.
misinformation
What is the significance of the ‘lost in the mall’ technique?
It demonstrates how false memories can be created through suggestion.
True or False: Children are more reliable eyewitnesses than adults.
False
What is the effect of time delay on memory recall?
A longer time delay between the event and recall can lead to increased inaccuracies in memory.
What is the purpose of a lineup in eyewitness identification?
A lineup is used to help witnesses identify a suspect from a group of individuals.
What is the ‘own-race bias’?
The own-race bias is the tendency for people to be better at recognizing faces of their own race compared to those of other races.
Fill in the blank: _____ refers to the process of recalling memories in a way that reflects one’s beliefs and expectations.
Memory reconstruction
What is the role of feedback in eyewitness testimony?
Feedback provided after an identification can influence a witness’s confidence and memory accuracy.
True or False: The presence of a weapon can enhance memory accuracy for other details.
False
What does ‘context reinstatement’ involve?
Context reinstatement involves recreating the environment in which an event occurred to aid in memory recall.
What is the significance of the ‘California study’ in terms of eyewitness testimony?
It highlighted the issues of eyewitness misidentification in wrongful convictions.
Fill in the blank: The _____ approach to eyewitness testimony emphasizes the need for unbiased questioning.
cognitive
What are the implications of misleading information for the criminal justice system?
Misleading information can lead to wrongful convictions and undermine the reliability of eyewitness testimony.
True or False: Memory is a perfect recording of events.
False
What is the difference between recall and recognition?
Recall involves retrieving information without cues, while recognition involves identifying information with cues.
What factors can affect the accuracy of eyewitness testimony?
Factors include stress, leading questions, memory distortion, and the passage of time.
Fill in the blank: The _____ principle states that memory is best when the context at encoding matches the context at retrieval.
encoding specificity
What is the impact of suggestive interviewing techniques on witnesses?
Suggestive interviewing techniques can lead to the creation of false memories and inaccuracies in recall.
True or False: Witnesses are often confident in their incorrect identifications.
True
What is the ‘feedback effect’ in eyewitness testimony?
The feedback effect occurs when witnesses receive affirming feedback, which can increase their confidence in incorrect identifications.
What is a ‘showup’ in eyewitness identification?
A showup is a procedure in which a single suspect is presented to a witness for identification.
Fill in the blank: _____ memory refers to the recollection of specific events or experiences.
Episodic
What is the role of emotion in eyewitness testimony?
Strong emotions can both enhance and impair memory accuracy.
What does the term ‘memory conformity’ mean?
Memory conformity occurs when a witness’s recall is influenced by the recollections of others.
True or False: All witnesses perceive events in the same way.
False
What is the significance of the ‘Yerkes-Dodson law’ in relation to eyewitness memory?
The Yerkes-Dodson law suggests that there is an optimal level of arousal for memory performance, with too much or too little arousal impairing recall.
What is ‘contextual information’?
Contextual information refers to the surrounding details and circumstances that can aid in memory recall.
Fill in the blank: The _____ effect describes how people are less accurate in identifying perpetrators of crimes when they are under stress.
stress
What is the ‘misinformation paradigm’?
The misinformation paradigm is a research method used to study how misleading information affects memory recall.
True or False: Eyewitness testimonies are often the most reliable form of evidence in court.
False
What can be done to improve the accuracy of eyewitness testimonies?
Using proper interviewing techniques, minimizing suggestive questioning, and implementing cognitive interviews can improve accuracy.
What is the impact of group discussion on eyewitness memory?
Group discussion can lead to memory conformity and the incorporation of inaccurate details.
Fill in the blank: _____ is a technique used to enhance the accuracy of eyewitness recall by allowing witnesses to describe events freely.
Free recall
What is the significance of the ‘Wells and Olson’ study?
It highlighted the impact of lineup procedures and the reliability of eyewitness identifications.
True or False: Suggestive questioning has no effect on memory recall.
False
What is ‘false memory’?
False memory refers to the recollection of events that did not actually occur or were distorted in memory.
What does the term ‘encoding’ refer to in memory processes?
Encoding is the process of transforming information into a format that can be stored in memory.
Fill in the blank: _____ refers to the ability to access information stored in memory.
Retrieval
What is the importance of proper lineup construction?
Proper lineup construction minimizes the risk of misidentification and enhances the accuracy of eyewitness testimony.
True or False: Witnesses are often able to accurately remember the details of a crime scene immediately after the event.
True
What is the ‘confidence-accuracy relationship’?
The confidence-accuracy relationship refers to the correlation between a witness’s confidence in their testimony and the actual accuracy of that testimony.
What is the effect of misleading post-event information on memory?
It can distort the original memory and lead to inaccuracies in recall.
Fill in the blank: _____ refers to the process of making sense of information after it has been encoded.
Consolidation
What is the role of distraction in eyewitness testimony?
Distraction can impair memory encoding and retrieval, leading to lower accuracy in recall.
True or False: Memory is a static and unchanging record of events.
False
What is the significance of the ‘Elizabeth Loftus’ research?
Loftus’s research has been pivotal in understanding how memory can be influenced by external factors, particularly in the context of eyewitness testimony.
What does the term ‘recall bias’ refer to?
Recall bias refers to the tendency for people to remember events in a way that is influenced by their beliefs or expectations.
Fill in the blank: _____ refers to the process by which memories are strengthened over time.
Memory consolidation
What is the impact of suggestive language on eyewitness testimony?
Suggestive language can lead to the creation of false memories and alter the accuracy of recall.
True or False: Eyewitness testimony can be influenced by the media.
True
What is the importance of training for law enforcement in conducting interviews with witnesses?
Training can help minimize the effects of suggestive questioning and improve the accuracy of eyewitness testimony.
