Davis et al. 2008

Question 1

Define ‘unconscious transference’.

Answer 1

UT refers to a misidentification of an innocent person who is familiar from a different context.

Question 2

Name and shortly explain the three possible mechanisms that might underly ‘unconscious transference’.

Answer 2

(1) Automatic processing: not enough encoding of specific features; later only sense of familiarity.
(2) Source monitoring errors: witness remembers to have encountered both individuals, however mixes them up later during retrieval.
(3) Inferring identity at encoding: refers to change blindness; during encoding witness infers that both persons are the same.

Question 3

Give an explanation for change blindness.

Answer 3

CB is partly caused by expectations of continuity. Moreover, perceptual gaps are filled in based on scripts.

Question 4

Based on the study, what is the role of change blindness and attention when it comes to unconscious transference?

Answer 4

Change blindness increases in situations of divided attention. Thus, shallower processing leads to proneness for change blindness, which will then affect accurate identification of a perpetrator.