Eyewitness Testimony

Question 1

What is the main cause of wrongful convictions in the United States?

Answer 1

Eyewitness misidentification, which has been involved in 69% of wrongful convictions.

Question 2

What are the instructional learning outcomes of studying eyewitness testimony?

Answer 2

To understand the factors impacting eyewitness accuracy and to make policy recommendations for justice system procedures based on psychological evidence.

Question 3

What are the three stages of memory processing in eyewitness testimony?

Answer 3

Acquisition, Storage, and Retrieval.

Question 4

How can errors impact eyewitness testimony?

Answer 4

Errors can occur at any of the three stages, impacting the reliability of the testimony.

Question 5

What are estimator variables?

Answer 5

Variables that affect eyewitness accuracy but are outside the control of the justice system.

Question 6

What are system variables?

Answer 6

Variables that can be controlled by the justice system to enhance the accuracy of eyewitness testimony.

Question 7

What are the three types of estimator variables?

Answer 7

Event characteristics, witness characteristics, and testimony characteristics.

Question 8

What event characteristics impact eyewitness accuracy?

Answer 8

Viewing conditions, stress levels, weapon focus, own-race bias, and disguise.

Question 9

What is the Rule of 15 regarding eyewitness testimony?

Answer 9

Accurate identification is more reliable if the exposure is over 15 seconds, the witness is within 15 meters, and the scene has illumination of at least 15 lux.

Question 10

What is the weapon focus effect?

Answer 10

Witnesses focus on a weapon present during the crime, reducing their ability to remember other details like the perpetrator’s face.

Question 11

What is the own-race bias in eyewitness testimony?

Answer 11

The tendency for individuals to recognize faces of their own race better than those of other races.

Question 12

What witness characteristic affects face recognition based on age?

Answer 12

People are generally better at recognizing individuals within their own age group, known as the own-age bias.

Question 13

How does line-up construction impact eyewitness accuracy?

Answer 13

A fair line-up with similar-looking foils reduces the chance of misidentification.

Question 14

What is the difference between simultaneous and sequential line-ups?

Answer 14

Simultaneous line-ups show all individuals at once, while sequential line-ups show suspects one at a time.

Question 15

What are the benefits of pre-identification instructions for witnesses?

Answer 15

Telling witnesses that the perpetrator may not be present reduces the chance of false identifications.

Question 16

What is the purpose of a double-blind line-up procedure?

Answer 16

It prevents the line-up administrator from knowing who the suspect is, reducing unintentional influence on the witness.

Question 17

How does juror perception of confidence impact trial outcomes?

Answer 17

Jurors often give undue weight to a witness’s confidence, mistaking it for accuracy.

Question 18

What effect does post-identification feedback have on eyewitness confidence?

Answer 18

Feedback like “Good job, you got the suspect” can inflate a witness’s confidence, potentially misleading jurors.

Question 19

What did the Smalarz & Wells study reveal about post-identification feedback?

Answer 19

It showed that feedback after identification affects witness confidence and juror perception of accuracy.

Question 20

What is the sequential superiority effect?

Answer 20

Sequential line-ups tend to be more accurate because they encourage witnesses to make absolute judgments rather than relative comparisons.

Question 21

Why might a simultaneous line-up lead to more relative judgments?

Answer 21

Witnesses are more likely to compare all line-up members at once, choosing the one who best resembles their memory rather than making an individual judgment.

Question 22

What kinds of errors can occur during the acquisition stage?

Answer 22

Errors like divided attention and focusing on irrelevant details, such as a weapon, can impact what is encoded in memory.

Question 23

How does time delay affect memory storage in eyewitnesses?

Answer 23

Memory decays over time, leading to storage errors that can reduce the accuracy of a later recall.

Question 24

How can retrieval errors impact eyewitness accuracy?

Answer 24

Errors during retrieval, often influenced by leading questions or feedback, can distort or alter memories.

Question 25

Why is confidence inflation a problem in eyewitness testimony?

Answer 25

Confidence inflation, caused by feedback, can make jurors overestimate the accuracy of a witness’s memory.

Question 26

How is witness confidence recorded to prevent bias?

Answer 26

Best practices recommend recording confidence immediately after identification to avoid later inflation from feedback.

Question 27

What did Loftus’s weapon-focus studies reveal about attention in high-stress situations?

Answer 27

Witnesses spend more time focusing on a weapon than on the perpetrator’s face, impairing facial recall accuracy.

Question 28

How does the Ebbinghaus forgetting curve relate to eyewitness memory?

Answer 28

It shows that memory retention declines sharply after the initial acquisition, impacting witness recall accuracy.

Question 29

What was the main finding of the Smalarz & Wells two-phase experiment with witnesses and jurors?

Answer 29

Feedback given after identification affects witness confidence, making jurors more likely to believe inaccurate testimony.

Question 30

What are some key recommendations for line-up procedures from AP-LS?

Answer 30

Match fillers to witness descriptions, use sequential line-ups, give pre-identification instructions, use double-blind administration, and record witness confidence at the time of ID.

Question 31

Why should repeated identifications (such as showing the suspect multiple times) be avoided?

Answer 31

Repeated identifications can lead to memory contamination and increase familiarity effects, making witnesses more likely to pick the suspect regardless of accuracy.