EWT: Misleading information

Question 1

What is eyewitness testimony?

Answer 1

The ability of people to remember details of events (accidents, crimes), which they themselves have observed

Question 2

What is misleading information?

Answer 2

Incorrect information given to an eyewitness usually after the event

Question 3

What is a leading question?

Answer 3

A question that suggests a certain answer, due to the way it has been phrased

Question 4

What is post-event discussion?

Answer 4

Occurs when an event has multiple witnesses. Witnesses may discuss what they have seen

Question 5

Who researched leading questions?

Answer 5

Loftus and Palmer

Question 6

What did Loftus and Palmer do?

Answer 6

• Arranged 45 participants to watch film clips of car accidents and asked them questions about the accident
• In the leading question, participants were asked to describe how fast cars were travelling
• There were 5 groups, each group was asked the question, using a different critical verb (hit, contacted, bumped, collided, smashed)

Question 7

What did Loftus and Palmer find and conclude?

Answer 7

• Mean estimated speed for ‘contacted’= 31.8 mph
• ‘Smashed’= 40.5 mph
• Leading question biased the eyewitnesses’ recall

Question 8

Why do leading questions affect EWT?

Answer 8

• Wording has no real effect on memory, but influences how participants answer
• Substitution explanation: proposes wording does change memory. Participants who heard ‘smashed’ were more likely to report seeing broken glass

Question 9

Who researched post-event discussion?

Answer 9

Gabbert et al

Question 10

What did Gabbert et al do?

Answer 10

• Participants studies in pairs
• Each participant watched a video of the same crime, but from a different perspective
• Both participants then discussed what they had seen, before completing an individual test recall

Question 11

What did Gabbert et al find and conclude?

Answer 11

• 71% of participants mistakenly recalled aspects of the event they did not see, but picked up within discussion
• Corresponding figure in control group (no discussion)= 0%
• Evidence of memory conformity

Question 12

Why does post-event discussion affect EWT?

Answer 12

• Memory contamination: when discussing an event, memories become distorted, and co-witnesses’ memories become combined
• Memory conformity: witnesses go along with each other, to win social approval, or because they believe the other witnesses are right. Actual memory is unchanged

Question 13

What are the strengths of misleading information?

Answer 13

• Real-world application

Question 14

What are the limitations of misleading information?

Answer 14

• Research issues
• Evidence against substitution
• Evidence challenging memory conformity
• Demand characteristics

Question 15

STRENGTH- Real-world application

Answer 15

I= important practical uses in criminal justice system
D= Loftus believes leading questions can have a distorting effect on memory, so officers need to take care when asking questions. Psychologists sometimes asked to act as expert witnesses in court trials, and explain limits of EWT
E= shows psychologists can help improve the way the legal system works (protect innocent people)

Question 16

LIMITATION- Research issues

Answer 16

I= practical applications of EWT may be affected by issues of research
D= Loftus and Palmer’s participants watched clips in a lab (less stressful than a real event). Foster et al argues eyewitness responses are important in the real-world, unlike research participant’s responses (less motivated to be accurate)
E= suggests researchers are too pessimistic about effects of misleading information

Question 17

LIMITATION- Evidence against substitution

Answer 17

I= EWT is more accurate for some aspects of an event than others
D= Sutherland and Hayne showed participants a video clip. When asked leading questions, recall was more accurate for central details, rather than peripheral ones. Attention focused on central events
E= suggests OG memories for central details survived and were not distorted

Question 18

LIMITATION- Evidence challenging memory conformity

Answer 18

I= evidence shows that post-event discussion alters EWT
D= Skagerberg and Wright shows participants clips (different versions). Mugger’s hair= in 1 was light brown, dark brown in 2. Discuss in pairs. Reported a blend of information
E= suggests memory is distorted through contamination by misleading post-event discussion, rather than a result of memory conformity

Question 19

LIMITATION- Demand characteristics

Answer 19

I= demand characteristics play a part in participant’s answers
D= Zaragoza and McCloskey say participants want to be helpful, so guess the answer to question, hoping to not let the researcher down
E= reduces the validity of research support