anxiety Flashcards
Why does anxiety have a negative effect on recall?
Creates arousal which prevents us from paying attention
Who researched the negative effect of anxiety?
Johnson and Scott
Describe Johnson and Scott’s procedure
Told pps they were doing a lab study
Argument next to waiting room
Low anxiety condition - man with pen and grease
High anxiety - knife and blood, breaking glass
Describe Johnson and Scott’s findings
49% of pen pps identified man
33% of knife pps identified
What is the tunnel theory of memory?
A witness’ attention narrows to focus on weapon
Why does anxiety have a positive effect on recall?
Fight or flight is triggered which increases alertness
Who researched the positive effect of anxiety?
Yuille and Cutshall
Describe Yuille and Cutshall’s procedure
Real life shooting in gun shop
13 witnesses
Interviews 4-5 months after
Compared to police interviews at the time
Rate stress on 7 point scale
Asked if they had emotional problems since
Describe and Yuille and Cutshall’s findings
Very accurate
Little change in accuracy
Highest levels of stress were most accurate
What did Yerkes and Dodson use to describe the relationship between anxiety and recall?
Inverted U
How does the Yerkes-Dodson law apply to EWT?
Lower anxiety = lower recall accuracy
Optimal level of anxiety
After this their recall declines
Evaluation - weapon focus effect not relevant
Johnson and Scott testing surprise not anxiety
Pickel - scissors, handgun, wallet, raw chicken in hairdressers
EW accuracy low in surprising condition
Tells us nothing about anxiety
Evaluation - field studies lack control
Interviews take place later
Extraneous variables in the meantime
Anxiety overwhelmed by these
Evaluation - ethical issues
Creating anxiety
Psychological harm
Real life studies better
Evaluation - inverted U is too simplistic
Anxiety is too difficult to define and measure
Many elements - cognitive, emotional etc
Inverted U only takes physiological into account
