Consider what psychological research has told us about the accuracy of eyewitness testimony.

Authors Avatar

(c) “Eye witness testimony differs from many other aspects of memory in that accuracy is of much greater importance.”

Consider what psychological research has told us about the accuracy of eyewitness testimony.

(18 marks)                                                        

L and P = Loftus and Palmer

Pps = Participants

EWT = Eyewitness testimony

Despite the considerable importance juror’s place on EWT, psychological research has shown that EWT tends to be unreliable. This unreliability can be explained in terms of the reconstructive nature of memory (schema theory). Introduced by Bartlett (1932), reconstructive memory refers to the extent to which memory is distorted or otherwise modified (reconstructed) by experience. In practice this means that instead of storing an exact replica of the episode they are witnessing, eyewitnesses may combine the initial stimulus with elements of their existing knowledge and experience (or schema) to form a reconstructed memory resulting in an inaccurate EWT account. Reconstruction is not the only source of distortion in EWT as the language used in leading questions and post-event information may further distort reconstructive memory and so lead to memory blending and confabulation. Research that has provided us with an insight into the effects of language and leading questions on the accuracy of EWT includes that of Loftus and her colleagues. For example, L & P (1974) found that changing the wording of one critical question (“About how fast were the cars going when they (hit/smashed/collided/ bumped/contacted – the five conditions) each other?”) posed to eyewitnesses of a car accident had a significant effect on the estimated speed of the vehicles. L and P found that estimated speed was influenced by the verb used (for example, the mean estimate when “smashed” was used was 41mph, versus 34mph when “hit” was used). The verb implied information about the speed, which systematically affected the pps’ memory of the accident. Further research on the effect of language (Loftus & Zanni, 1975) found that the definite article “the” was more leading than the indefinite article “a” as only 7% of those asked about “a” broken headlight said they had seen it, compared to 17% of those asked about “the” broken headlight, when in fact there was no broken headlight in the film.

Join now!

    The research by Bartlett and Loftus has been very useful in highlighting the potential biases in EWT and these insights have been applied to the cognitive interview. However, the validity of the above insights into sources of bias can be questioned. Whilst Loftus et al. have demonstrated the effects of leading questions and post-event information, as this research was carried out in the artificial conditions of the laboratory demand characteristics may have been revealed. Consequently, the internal (experimental) validity of the research can be questioned and so caution must be taken in accepting these findings as true. Mundane ...

This is a preview of the whole essay

Here's what a teacher thought of this essay

Summary The writer has covered this topic well and has cited many, varied, experiments which have been carried out on the subject of eye witness testimony. The writing could be improved if some of the experiments were explained more clearly and in more detail. It would also read better if the writing was more organised with an introduction, the main body of work and then a conclusion. Rating 3*