Factors Affecting Eyewitness Testimony: Anxiety

Question 1

What study found anxiety has negative effect on recall?

Answer 1

Johnson and Scott (weapon focus): high anxiety knife condition led to less good recall. Tunnel theory of memory.

Question 2

What study found anxiety has positive effect on recall?

Answer 2

Yuille and Cutshall (shooting): high anxiety associated with better recall when witnessing real crime.

Question 3

Who did a study suggesting contradictory findings?

Answer 3

Yerkes-Dodson law suggests both low & high anxiety led to poor recall

Question 4

Evaluation

Answer 4

Weapon focus effect may not be relevant
Field studies sometimes lack control
Ethical issues
Inverted-U explanation too simplistic
Demand characteristics operate in lab studies of anxiety

Question 5

What does it mean?

Answer 5

Emotional and physical arousal effects recall