Loftus & Palmer: Leading Questions Flashcards
What is a leading question?
Where the questioner asks something but includes information that could cause you to give a different answer
What did Loftus and Palmer do?
45 students out into 5 groups of 9 and shown a video of a car accident, afterward each group was asked a different question
What 5 verbs were replaced in each question?
- Smashed
- Collided
- Bumped
- Hit
- Contacted
What were the findings?
There was a 9mph difference between verbs smashed and contacted suggesting leading questions affect accurate recall
What are 3 evaluation points?
- Lacks population validity: small sample and all students
- Lack stress of real incident: watched video
- No real life consequences
What 2 explanations did Loftus and Palmer suggest affected the results?
- Response bias
- Memory is altered
What is response bias?
The different speed estimates occurred because the critical word influences or biases a persons response, just to that question alone
What is memory is altered?
The critical word changes a persons memory so they actually see the accident differently
What did Loftus and Palmer aim to do in their second study?
Test if the use of leading questions is a result of response bias or if the memory is altered
What was the procedure of their second study?
150 students put into 3 groups of 50 and shown a video of a car accident, each group was asked a different question
What were the 3 groups asked?
1) Smashed
2) Hit
3) No question about speed of car
A week later all pps asked back and asked if they saw any broken glass (there was none)
What did they find in their second study?
The initial leading question changed the way that information about the whole event was stored. Pps recall more glass in the smashed group compared to hot or contol groups
What did they conclude in their second study?
Their second explanation was correct (memory is altered), the critical word changes a persons memory so they actaully see the accident differently
