Cognitive Classic Evidence Flashcards
What is the classic research within the cognitive approach refers?
Reconstruction of automobile destruction: an example of the interaction between language and memory
Who were the researchers within the cognitive research
Loftus and Palmer (1974)
What were Loftus and Palmer investigating?
The effects of leading questions on eye-witnesses memory
What are leading questions?
A question that suggests to the eye-witness what answer is desired or leads them to the desired answer
What is an eye-witness testimony?
Witnesses of a crime asked to give evidence in court
What was the aim of experiment one within Loftus and Palmer’s research?
To investigate if the speed estimates of participants were influenced by the verbs used i the questions aske
What was the aim of experiment two within Loftus and Palmer’s research?
To investigate whether leading questions simply bias a person’s response or actually alter the memory that is stored
What is the research method used in experiment one?
Lab experiment
What is the experimental design used in experiment one?
Independent groups
What is the sample used in experiment one?
45 students
What is the sampling method used in experiment one?
Opportunity sample
What is the procedure of experiment one?
- Students spilt into 5 groups, 9 in each one
- All groups shown the same 7 clips of car accidents
- All students filled a questionnaire with the critical question ‘How fast were the cars going when they …. each other’
- The 5 verbs used were ‘hit, smashed, collided, bumped and contacted’
- Speed estimates were recorded in mph
What was the leading question in experiment one?
‘How fast were the cars going when they …. each other?’
What were the verbs used in experiment one?
hit, smashed, collided, bumped and contacted
What was a summary of the findings of experiment one?
- ‘Smashed’ - estimated a mean speed of 40.8 mph
- ‘Contacted’ - estimated a mean speed of 31.8 mph
- Memory is not always reliable and can be distorted by leading questions