Memory conformity affects inaccurate memories more than accurate memories

After controlling for initial confidence, inaccurate memories were shown to be more easily distorted than accurate memories. In two experiments groups of participants viewed 50 stimuli and were then presented with these stimuli plus 50 fillers. During this test phase participants reported their confidence that each stimulus was originally shown. This was followed by computer-generated responses from a bogus participant. After being exposed to this response participants again rated the confidence of their memory. The computer-generated responses systematically distorted participants’ responses. Memory distortion depended on initial memory confidence, with uncertain memories being more malleable than confident memories. This effect was moderated by whether the participant's memory was initially accurate or inaccurate. Inaccurate memories were more malleable than accurate memories. The data were consistent with a model describing two types of memory (i.e., recollective and non-recollective memories), which differ in how susceptible these memories are to memory distortion.     

Sex trade workers' narratives of sexual violence: A field investigation

A total of 119 sex trade workers were interviewed about sexually violent experiences. Up to three narratives were elicited: a remarkable, positive (control) event (POS), a well-remembered sexual assault (WELL), and a poorly recalled sexual assault (POOR). The results demonstrated that WELL narratives contained more details than POS narratives despite the fact that the respective experiences were older. WELL narratives were also associated with higher intoxication and more rehearsal than POS narratives. POOR narratives were as detailed as POS narratives. WELL narratives were associated with more PTSD symptoms than POOR narratives. No weapon focus effect and no differences in peritraumatic dissociation were observed to explain this difference. This study was the first to demonstrate great within-participants variability of narrative details in accounts of sexual violence. The findings challenge common opinions in the eyewitness literature. Implications for expert testimony and credibility assessment are discussed.     

Is saccade-induced retrieval enhancement a potential means of improving eyewitness evidence?

Saccade-induced retrieval enhancement (SIRE) is the effect whereby making bilateral saccades enhances the subsequent retrieval of memories. Two experiments explored SIRE's potential to improve eyewitness evidence. Participants viewed slideshows depicting crimes, and received contradictory and additive misinformation about event details either once (Experiment 1) or three times (Experiment 2). Participants then performed saccades or a fixation control task before being tested on their memory for the slideshows and making confidence judgements. Saccades increased discrimination between seen and unseen event details regardless of whether or what type of misinformation was presented. Because prior studies indicated that SIRE might be more robust for individuals who are strongly right-handed versus not, we examined SIRE as a function of handedness and found that saccades improved memory for event details regardless of participants' handedness. However, participants who were not strongly right-handed had fewer false memories than participants who were strongly right-handed, extending previous findings of superior memory among individuals who are not strongly right-handed. Saccades also increased confidence in true memories (Experiment 1) and decreased confidence in false memories (Experiment 2). The results support SIRE's potential to improve eyewitness evidence.     

Methods and aims of investigative interviewing of adult witnesses: An analysis of professional practices

Eyewitnesses provide crucial evidence for the investigation of criminal cases. We analysed professional police interviewers’ behaviour by conducting a literature review. Our results indicate that the interviewing techniques used by untrained and trained investigators are predominantly inappropriate and harmful to memory recall. The way investigators curtail and select witnesses’ responses suggests that they look for specific information. As a subsequent step, we analysed investigative interviewing in terms of professional objectives, identifying the types of information that the police inquire about during the interview. Based on our results, we conclude future research should perform a fine-grained analysis of professional interviewing procedures with the aim of producing effective interviewing techniques that meet investigators’ real-world objectives.     

儿童社会认识论:儿童对信息提供者的选择性信任

个体掌握的知识很多来自于他人的传授。从4岁起,儿童就意识到不同的信息提供者在可靠性上存在差异。他们根据与提供者间的熟悉程度、提供者过往陈词的准确性、以及来自他人的线索等策略对于信息提供者的可靠性进行评估,从而决定谁更值得信任。未来关于儿童对于信息提供者选择性信任的研究应从扩展探究的知识领域、对于信息提供者其他特征的操纵、以及潜在文化差异检验等方面进行。     

Idiosyncratic effects of interviewer behavior on the accuracy of children's responses

Children are interviewed to provide information about past events in various contexts (e.g., police interviews, court proceedings, therapeutic interviews). During an interview, various factors may influence the accuracy of children's responses to questions about recent events. However, behavioral research in this area is limited. Sparling et al. (2011) showed that children frequently provided inaccurate responses to questions about video clips they just watched depending on the antecedents (i.e., the way a question was asked) and consequences (i.e., the response of the interviewer to their answers). In the current study, we replicated and extended the procedures reported by Sparling et al. and found that two of five children were sensitive to the various antecedents and consequences that we manipulated. Our findings indicate a need for more research in this area to determine the relevant environmental variables that affect children's response accuracy.     

Lineup administrator influences on eyewitness identification and eyewitness confidence

Lineup administrators were trained to respond to witnesses in such a way as to redirect them from making non-identifications or foil identification responses toward making identifications of the suspect. Compared to a no-influence control condition, suspect identification rates in the influence condition increased substantially and proportionally for guilty and innocent suspects. Administrators steered witnesses more specifically toward the suspect when the suspect was guilty than when the suspect was innocent. Post-identification confidence for correct identifications of the guilty suspect did not differ significantly across the influence and no-influence groups. However, post-identification confidence for false identifications of the innocent suspect was significantly lower for the influence group than for the no-influence group because witnesses who were influenced to make false identifications tended to be those who were less confident prior to the lineup, and also because those witnesses became less confident from pre- to post-identification.     

Research-Based Guidelines for Child Forensic Interviews

Abstract

We present important considerations for conducting forensic interviews with children who are witnesses to or alleged victims of crime. Specifically, we (a) present the basic principles of the forensic interview and review some of the best structured forensic protocols currently available; (b) provide a detailed, practical blueprint for conducting a structured forensic interview and emphasize how the components of the interview are based upon empirical research; and (c) discuss special con siderations for interviews with children of different age groups and children who have special needs or circumstances, and interviews involving various crime circumstances. We end with suggestions to assist legal and social service professionals in accessing the social science research literature that should inform forensic interview techniques.     

The benefits of knowing what you know (and what you don’t): How calibration affects credibility

People tend to believe, and take advice from, informants who are highly confident. However, people use more than a mere “confidence heuristic.” We believe that confidence is influential because—in the absence of other information—people assume it is a valid cue to an informant’s likelihood of being correct. However, when people get evidence about an informant’s calibration (i.e., her confidence-accuracy relationship) they override reliance on confidence or accuracy alone. Two experiments in which participants choose between two opposing witnesses to a car accident show that neither confidence nor accuracy alone explains judgments of credibility; rather, whether a person is seen as credible ultimately depends on whether the person demonstrates good calibration. Credibility depends on whether sources were justified in believing what they believed.