Memory Accuracy (Memory) Flashcards
What happens when we retrive memories?
We reconstruct them which may result in things being forgotten or modified = not always accurate.
What are false memories?
Memories that didn’t actually happen.
What are the factors that affect eyewitness testimony?
- Leading questions
- Post-event discussion
- Anxiety
What is eyewitness testimony?
The ability to remember details of events which they may have observed.
What are leading questions?
Questions which are phrased to suggest a certain answer.
- Influences memory recall + lead to false memories.
What is post-event discussion?
Witnesses may discuss what they have seen with other people.
- May influence the accuracy of each witnesses recall of event.
What is anxiety?
Strong emotional/physical effects which may make eyewitness recall better or worse.
What is the effect on accuracy is somone is only a little bit anxious?
Accuracy is better.
What is the effect on accuracy is somone is very anxious?
Accuracy is worse.
What scale is anxiety measure on?
‘The inverted U’
Who conducted a study on leading questions?
Loftus and Palmer
What was the procedure of Loftus and Palmer’s leading question study?
- Lab study
- Asked them leading questions about the way the car had crashed.
- Used an intense verb ‘smashed’ = ppts judged the car as driving fast.
What was the aim of Loftus and Palmer’s leading question study?
How accuratly could ppts recall a video of a car crash.
What were the findings of Loftus and Palmer’s leading question study?
Leading questions biased the eyewitness recall of event.
What are the ways leading questions affect the EWT?
- Response-bias
- Subsitution
What is the response-bias explanation?
The wording of the question has no real effect on ppts memories, just influences how they decide to answer.
What is the subsitution explanation?
Wording of leading questions changes the ppts memory.
What was the procedure of Loftus and Palmer’s second study?
- Asked questions about broken glass.
- Ppts had a false memory that there had been broken glass in the video.
- The intense verb ‘smashed’ was used.
What were the findings of Loftus and Palmer’s second study?
- The intense verb altered the memory.
- Supports the subsitution explanation.
What are the limitations of Loftus and Palmer’s studies?
- Demand characteristics: ppts may have only given those answers because they thought it was what they were expected to say.
- Lack ecological validity: if it was a real life situation ppts may have paid more attention/tried harder to give accurate answers.
Who conducted a study into post-event discussion?
Gabbert.
What was the procedure of Gabbert’s post-event discussion study?
- Studied ppts in pairs.
- Each watched a video of the same crime but saw from different points of view.
- Both discussed what they had seen before individually completing a test of recall.
What were the findings of Gabbert’s post-event discussion study?
- 71% = mistakenly recalled aspects they didn’t see but picked up in discussion.
- 0% = mistakes recalled in control group (no discussion).
- They go along with eachother to either win social approval/believe others are right (memory conformity).
Who studied the negative effects on recall?
Johnson and Scott
What was the procedure of Johnson and Scott’s negative effect study?
- Led ppts to think they were involved in a lab study.
- While in waiting room heard an arguement in next room.
- Low anxiety condition: man walked through carrying a pen and grease on hands
- High anxiety condition: argument followed by sound of breaking glass + man walked through holding knife covered in blood.
What were the findings of Johnson and Scott’s negative effect study?
- Ppts later picked out the man from photos.
- 49% = identified man carrying pen.
- 33% = identified man holding knife.
- Tunnel theory: witnesses attention narrows to focus on a weapon (source of anxiety).
Who conductde a study on the postive effects of anxiety on recall?
Yuille and Cutshall
What was Yuille and Cutshall’s study?
A real life study of people witnessing a shooting.
What were Yuille and Cutshall’s findings?
Witnesses had cleat memory of the event.
Who produced the cognitive interview?
Fisher and Geiselman
What was the aim of the cognitive interview?
To improve accuracy of memory recall.
What are the techniuques used within cogntive interview?
1) Report everything
2) Reinstate the context
3) Reverse order
4) Change perspective
What does report everything mean within cogntive interview?
Include lots of detail of the event which may trigger important memories.
What does reinstate the context mean within cogntive interview?
Returing to the original crime scene in their minds.
- Thinking about: weather, what they could see, emotions etc.
- Links to context-dependent forgetting.
What does reverse order mean within cogntive interview?
Recalling in a different order.
- Prevents reporting own expectations and dishonesty.
What does change perspective mean within cogntive interview?
Recalling from another perspective disrupts the effects of expectations + schema on recall.
What is a limitation of cognitive interview?
It’s less effective when interviewing children.
What is the enchanced cognitive interview? (Fisher)
Focuses on building a trusting relationship between individuals + witnesses.
How do you gain a trusting relationship with the enchanced cognitive interview?
- Eye contact
- Reduce anxiety
- Minimising distractions
- Speaking slowly
- Open ended questions
