Memory- Eye Witness Testimonies

Question 1

What are the 2 factors affecting EWT’s?

Answer 1

-misleading information
-anxiety

Question 2

What are the 2 types of misleading information?

Answer 2

-leading questions
-post event discussions

Question 3

What is a leading question (1)?

Answer 3

-a question that wrongly implies something about an event or crime, such as ‘what colour was the youth’s jacket?’ which implies that the perpetrator was a youth

Question 4

How do leading questions affect the accuracy of EWT? (1)

Answer 4

-is implied in the question contaminates the witnesses memory and therefore witnesses recall inaccurate information

Question 5

Describe the aim of Loftus & Palmer’s research into leading questions

Answer 5

-to investigate whether the phrasing of a question can affect ppts memory of an event

Question 6

Describe the method of Loftus & Palmer’s research into leading questions

Answer 6

Lab experiment

Question 7

Describe the sample in Loftus & Palmer’s research into leading questions

Answer 7

45 American students (split into 5 groups of 9)

Question 8

Describe the procedure of Loftus & Palmer’s research into leading questions

Answer 8

-all 45 ppts were shown a video of a car crash and each group was asked a leading question with a different verb (IV)
-the verbs were smashed, collided, bumped, hit and contacted
-they were asked how fast were the cars travelling when they (verb) each other?
-Loftus & Palmer measured ppts estimated speed in MPH

Question 9

What are the verbs in Loftus & Palmer’s research into leading questions and what is an acronym for this?

Answer 9

-Smashed, Collided, Bumped, Hit, Contacted
- Simon Cowell Bit His Cat

Question 10

Describe the findings of Loftus & Palmer’s research into leading questions

Answer 10

-they found ppts guessed a higher mean speed when they had ‘smashed’ (40.5 mph) compared to ‘contacted’ (31.8mph)

Question 11

Describe the conclusion of Loftus & Palmer’s research into leading questions

Answer 11

The phrasing of a question can influence a participants memory of an event, decreasing the accuracy of EWT

Question 12

Evaluate leading questions as a factor affecting EWT

Answer 12

-has practical applications (cognitive interviews)
-if witness statements are more accurate, this could lead to quicker convictions of criminals which could improve the economy
-Loftus & Palmer’s research lacks mundane realism as there was an artificial task of watching a video of a car crash

Question 13

What is meant by post event discussion? (1)

Answer 13

Where witnesses of an event/ crime discuss their accounts with each other after the event has occurred

Question 14

How does post event discussions affect the accuracy of EWT?

Answer 14

Reduces it

Question 15

What are the two types of post event discussion?

Answer 15

-memory contamination
-memory conformity

Question 16

Describe memory contamination

Answer 16

-when co-witnesses to a crime discuss it with each other, their EWT may become altered/distorted
-this is because they combine (mis)information from other witnesses with their own memories suggesting that their memories of events have changed

Question 17

Describe memory conformity

Answer 17

-witnesses go along with each other either to win social approval (NSI) or because they believe the other witnesses is right and they are wrong (ISI)
-however, unlike with memory contamination, their memory remains unchanged but the accuracy of recall has been affected

Question 18

Evaluate post event discussion as a type of misleading information

Answer 18

-RTS- Skagerberg and Wright- showed a video of a mugging with two different hair colours
-lacks ecological validity as it was conducted in a controlled environment (lab)

Question 19

Describe Skagerberg and Wright’s research into post event discussions

Answer 19

-showed ppts 2 versions of a film clip of a mugging, in one the mugger had dark brown hair and in the other he had light brown hair
-they discussed the clip in pairs but each person watched a different version
-it was found that they suggested the mugger had medium brown hair instead of dark or light

Question 20

What is meant by anxiety in terms of EWTs? (1)

Answer 20

Anxiety is a string emotional and physical state that affects EWT

Question 21

How does anxiety affect the accuracy of EWT? (1)

Answer 21

Extreme anxiety has been found to negatively affect EWT as witnesses only focus on certain aspects of the event so their recall is limited

Question 22

Who conducted research into anxiety as a factor affecting EWT?

Answer 22

Johnson & Scott

Question 23

Describe the aim of Johnson & Scott’s research into anxiety as a factor affecting EWTs

Answer 23

To investigate the effects of anxiety on the accuracy of EWT

Question 24

What was the method of Johnson & Scott’s research into anxiety as a factor affecting EWT

Answer 24

Laboratory experiment

Question 25

What was the procedure of Johnson & Scott’s research into anxiety as a factor affecting EWT

Answer 25

-all ppts were told to wait outside a room before the experiment began
-ppts were placed in 1 of 2 conditions (either a high anxiety ‘weapon focus’ condition OR low anxiety condition)
-HIGH ANXIETY CONDITION- ‘weapon focus’ - ppts heard an argument and the sound of breaking glass from within the room and a man walked out of the room carrying a knife covered in blood
-LOW ANXIETY CONDITION- ppts heard an arguement from within the room before a man walked out with grease in their hands and a pen
-ppts had to identify the person who left the room from 50 photographs (DV)

Question 26

Describe the findings of Johnson & Scott’s research into anxiety as a factor affecting EWT

Answer 26

-ppts in the low anxiety condition correctly identified the man leaving the room 49% of the time
-ppts in the high anxiety condition correctly identified the man leaving the room 33% of the time

Question 27

What is the conclusion of Johnson & Scott’s research into anxiety as a factor affecting EWT

Answer 27

Anxiety caused a ‘weapon focus’ as the witness concentrates on the weapon not the person because of the fear of the situation, reducing accuracy of eyewitness recall

Question 28

Evaluate anxiety as a factor affecting the accuracy of EWT

Answer 28

• RTS-Valentine & Mesout- took part in a high anxiety event and were immediately asked to recall physical details
  -RTC- Christianson & Hubinette- interviewed witnesses of a real life bank robbery and recall was more accurate when directly threatened
  -HOWEVER- they interviewed ppts over several months and had no control over what happened in the intervening time

Question 29

Describe Valentine & Mesout’s research into the negative effect of anxiety as a factor affecting EWT

Answer 29

-researchers used an objective measure (heart rate) to divide participants into high and low anxiety groups
-ppts took part in the London dungeon labyrinth (a high anxiety event ) and then were immediately asked to recall physical details of the actor from the event
-high anxiety lowered the accuracy of the EWT significantly

Question 30

Who conducted research to contradict Johnson & Scott’s research

Answer 30

Christianson & Hubinette

Question 31

Describe Christianson & Hubinette’s research into anxiety

Answer 31

• interviewed 58 real life witnesses of a bank robbery where some had been directly threatened (high anxiety) and others were bystanders
  -it was found that recall was more than 75% accurate across all witnesses but those who were threatened had even more accurate recall

Question 32

Give a weakness of Christianson & Hubinette’s research into anxiety

Answer 32

• interviewed ppts several months after the event and had no control over what happened between this period
  -For example, participants may have discussed the event with each other
  -The effect of anxiety may have been overwhelmed by the factors such as post event discussion
  -Reduces the validity

Question 33

Describe how Yerkes-Dodson Law can affect anxiety as a factor affecting the accuracy of EWT

Answer 33

-proposes anxiety and the accuracy of EWT is not a simple relationship
-For example, too little or too much anxiety would result in poor EWT RECALL
-If you reach an optimum level of anxiety, the accuracy of EWT is high

Question 34

What is a cognitive interview?

Answer 34

-a technique used by police to interview witnesses after they have seen a crime or accident to help facilitate the most accurate and detailed memory possible
-lots of ‘open’ questions are asked wheee the witness is not interrupted and free to expand on their own answers

Question 35

Compare a standard interview to a cognitive interview (3)

Answer 35

-cognitive interviews have open ended questions WHEREAS standard interviews have closed direct questions
-cognitive interviews are not interrupted WHEREAS standard interviews are often interrupted
-cognitive interviews have more retrieval paths WHEREAS standard interviews have less retrieval paths

Question 36

What techniques are used in a cognitive interview?

Answer 36

-recall everything
-context reinstatement
-recall in reverse order
-recall from changed perspective

Question 37

Describe recall everything in a cognitive interview

Answer 37

-the witness is asked to report all details of the event even if it seems irrelevant

Question 38

How does recall everything in a cognitive interview improve EWTs?

Answer 38

-the recall of one piece of information might act as a trigger to memory recall of other key information

Question 39

Give an example of a question used in a cognitive interview to recall everything?

Answer 39

“Start from the beginning, what happened the morning of the robbery?”

Question 40

Describe context reinstatement in a cognitive interview

Answer 40

-The witness is asked to mentally place themselves back at the scene of the event and imagine the environment such as
-the weather
-what they could see
-and their emotions

Question 41

How will context reinstatement improve EWTs?

Answer 41

-uses content and state dependent cues to help trigger memories if the event that may appear forgotten but are not currently accessible due to retrieval failure

Question 42

Give an example of a question used in a cognitive interview for context reinstatement

Answer 42

“Close your eyes… what do you see, what’s the weather like, what was x wearing, how were you feeling when…”

Question 43

Describe recall in reverse order in a cognitive interview

Answer 43

-the witness asked to report what happened in a different chronological order, for example from the end of the crime to the start

Question 44

How will recall in reverse order improve EWTs?

Answer 44

-prevent witnesses reporting what they expected to happen (schema) rather than what happened
-it also prevents dishonesty as it is harder to lie when having to reverse a story

Question 45

Give an example of a question used a cognitive interview for recall in reverse order

Answer 45

“Tell us what happened from when you entered the bank”

Question 46

Describe recall from a changed perspective in cognitive interview

Answer 46

-the witness is asked to recall the incident from another persons perspective who witnessed the crime
-e.g another witness or the perpetrator

Question 47

How will recall from a changed perspective improve EWTs?

Answer 47

-may prevent witnesses reporting what they expected to happen (schema) rather than what happened

Question 48

Give an example of a question used in a cognitive interview for recall from a changed perspective

Answer 48

“Imagine you’re the bank robber… what do you see”