EWT: Misleading Information Flashcards
what is eye witness testimony?
2
evidence provided in court by someone who has witnessed a crime
explanations for inaccuracy in eyewitness testimony….
• misleading information
• anxiety
misleading information
3
supplying information that may alter a witness’ memory of a crime
information that affects what they remember about an event, leading to inaccuracy
2 examples of misleading information; leading questions + post event discussion
leading questions
3
questions that suggest to the witness what the desired answer is or leads them to that desired answer
either due to the form or content of the question
can alter a response or even cause the memory to change before it is stored
post event discussion
5
a conversation between co-witnesses or an interviewer and an eyewitness after a crime has taken place
may contaminate or alter a witness’ memory of the event
conformity effect = co witnesses may discuss the crime and reach a consensus view of what happened, discussing the event with others can alter the memory of an event
Gabbert et al found that 71% of those who discussed the event went on to mistakenly recall information acquired during such discussions
repeat interviewing = each time an eyewitness is interviewed it is possible that comments from the interviewer can become incorporated into their recollection of events, interviewers may also ask leading questions, thus altering the witness’ memory of the event
key study into leading questions
(experiment 1)
7
Loftus and Palmer (1974)
- 45 students were shown 7 different films of traffic accidents
- after each film they were given a questionnaire which asked questions about the accident and required them to describe it
- one group were asked about the speed of the cars when they “hit” eachother
- other groups were given the same question but the verb “hit” was replaced with verbs such as “smashed” and “contacted”
- this was a leading question as the verb used suggested the answer that should be given (e.g. the verb “smashed” suggests that the cars were driving at a high speed while “contacted” suggests they were not)
- found that questions with the verb “smashed” in it resulted in a mean speed estimate of 40.8 mph, while “contacted” resulted in a lower estimate of only 31.8 mph
- suggests that leading questions can effect EWT, the phrasing of a question can clearly impact a witnesses’ response which demonstrates that misleading information reduces accuracy of EWT
key study into leading questions
(experiment 2)
6
Loftus and Palmer (1974)
- a new set of participants were divided into 3 groups and shown a short film of a car accident and asked about the speed of the cars
- they returned a week later and were asked 10 questions about the accident, including whether they saw any broken glass
- there was no broken glass in the film, but presumably those who thought the car was travelling faster would be more likely to assume that there would be broken glass
- found that 16 people with the “smashed” verb in their question said they saw broken glass, whereas only 7 people with the verb “hit” in their question reported seeing broken glass
- suggests that leading questions can alter the memory a witness has of an event, making them believe that they’ve seen something they haven’t
- the phrasing of a question can clearly influence a witness’ response, demonstrating that misleading information reduces the accuracy of EWT
x4 evaluation points
for Loftus and Palmer OR misleading information as a whole
laboratory experiment
support from Bugs Bunny study
challenged by Yuille and Cutshall
real life applications
EVALUATION
laboratory experiment
5
a strength of research into misleading information is that much of it is conducted in laboratories
variables can be precisely controlled which reduces the likelihood of them interfering with results and gives research internal validity
furthermore, it makes the study easier to replicate and can be repeated to test for reliability
for example, both parts of Loftus and Palmer’s study into leading questions were laboratory experiments where variables were controlled — all participants watched the same film and were asked the same questions (except for the deliberate verb change)
therefore, the research can be said to be accurate and may have increased usefulness in explaining the effect of misleading information on accuracy of eye witness testimony
EVALUATION
supported by the Bugs Bunny study
7
conducted by Loftus and Pickrell
participants were asked to evaluate advertisements for Disneyland and within these advertisements there was misleading information
Bugs Bunny featured in some of the adverts which is misleading because this character is not a Disney character so could not have been at Disneyland
participants were either assigned to the Bugs Bunny condition or control condition with no misleading information
those in the misleading information condition were more likely to report meeting and shaking hands with Bugs Bunny at Disneyland than the control group
this supports the theory as it suggests that misleading information can create false memories and lead to inaccuracy in memory recall
therefore, the theory may be very useful in explaining the effects of misleading information on accuracy of EWT
EVALUATION
challenged by Yuille and Cutshall
5
Yuille and Cutshall investigated a real life shooting where a shop owner who had just been robbed went outside and was shot by the thief
21 witnesses observed the shooting and were interviewed by the police, 13 of these witnesses agreed to take part in a research interview where leading questions were asked
they found that most witnesses were still highly accurate in their accounts of the crime and there was little change in their recollection of events since the incident
this challenges the theory as it suggests that accuracy of EWT is not so easily affected by misleading information, particularly in real life
therefore, the theory may have limited usefulness in explaining the effect of misleading information on accuracy of EWT
EVALUATION
real life applications
6
research into misleading information can have very useful real life applications
the criminal justice system relies heavily on eyewitness identification and the theory can be used to warn against the over reliance on EWT and highlight how easily EWT can be influenced
inaccurate EWT has been one of the largest factors contributing to the conviction of innocent people — one study found that 72% of overturned convictions involved inaccurate EWT
by suggesting to the criminal justice system that accuracy of EWT can be easily influenced by misleading information, it has been useful in making sure that EWT is viewed with caution and perhaps reducing the number of innocent people convicted based on inaccurate EWTs
the theory has also helped to develop cognitive interviews and has made police officers more self aware and conscious of how they phrase questions to eyewitnesses
this helps reduce the likelihood of them altering eyewitness reports subconsciously, which helps improve accuracy of eyewitness testimony
