Ch. 8 - Eyewitness Testimony: Memory and Identification

Question 1

Estimator variables

Answer 1

factors that may affect eyewitness testimony and that are NOT under the control of the justice system
e.g. Emotional state of eyewitness, amount of attention eyewitness paid to event and perpetrator, lighting conditions at event

Question 2

System variables

Answer 2

factors that may affect eyewitness testimony and that are under the control of the justice system
e.g. the way an interview was conducted, the way a lineup is constructed

Question 3

Eyewitness’s suggestibility

Answer 3

the tendency of an eyewitness to be easily influenced by suggestion

Question 4

Weapon Focus Effect

Answer 4

the phenomenon whereby a witness’s memory for details is impaired by the presence of a weapon

Question 5

Enhanced Cognitive Interview (ECI)

Answer 5

a method of interviewing witnesses to enhance the correct recall of information
- Relies on feature overlap and multiple retrieval paths; use of 4 prompts

Question 6

Own-race bias

Answer 6

phenomenon whereby within race identifications are significantly more likely to be accurate than cross race identifications

Question 7

Unconscious transference

Answer 7

inaccurately attributing a face to a different context

Question 8

Cotton Case

Answer 8

Ronald Cotton was exonerated in 1995, after spending over 10 years in prison for sexual assualt. His convictions were based largely on an eyewitness misidentification made by one of the victims, Jennifer Thompson-Cannino. Cotton and Thompson-Cannino are now good friends and leading advocates for eyewitness identification reform
- Example of own-race bias

Question 9

Blank lineup

Answer 9

A lineup in which every member is known to be innocent of the offence in question; can help reduce false identification