Debate Flashcards
What is the debate for the cognitive approach?
The reliability of eye-witness testimony
Explain crimes being an emotional experience makes EWT not reliable
Eye witnesses may not be reliable because the witness may struggle to recall it as it may be a potentially painful memory via repression to defend our ego
Evidence : Freud - repression
Why is the existence of schemas a reason why EWT may not be reliable?
We have Schemas which may distort our memory of an event , this is because we have preconceived ideas about how criminals should look
(e.g burgular Schema)
Why can crimes being an emotive experience mean they are reliable?
Evidence has linked adrenaline to the creation of flashbulb memories, which is an intense and vivid picture-perfect memory of an event , making EWT highly reliable in some cases
Why do schemas not always mean that EWT is unreliable?
For many crimes , the victims know the perpetrator of the crime so they don’t need to use their schemas
(E.g: RapeCrisis 90% of rapist are know their victim)
Why are child witnesses seen are unreliable?
It is argued that childrens minds are prone to fantasy , so may be unreliable as they make things up
Why are child witnesses seen as reliable?
Evidence shows that children are actually fairly reliable in their recollection of events and dont make things up
Evidence: Davies et al (1989) - 6,7 and 10 and 11 found no fantasy in children’s recollection of events
Why may post-event information make EWT unreliable?
Post-event information may effect the memory of an event as suggested Loftus and Palmer (1974) and may make EWT unreliable as memory can be effected
Why might EWT not be effected by post-event information?
Post-event information may not effect key details about a crime
Evidence : Loftus (1979b) - found that 98% of ppts remembered that a red bag was stolen despite being told that it was a brown bag
