Repeated Testing of Eyewitnesses for Violent Events

• NCJ Number: 102334
• Author(s): E M Scrivner
• Date Published: 1985
• Length: 168 pages
• Grant Number(s): 84-IJ-CX-0045
• Sponsoring Agency: National Institute of Justice (NIJ); US Dept of Justice NIJ Pub
• Sale Source: UMI Dissertation Services
• Publication Type: Research (Applied/Empirical)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: The Catholic University of America - doctoral dissertation

Annotation

An experimental study of eyewitness memory for a violent crime focused on the effects of repeated testing for recall and the effects of providing the witnesses with cues related to emotions or context.

Abstract

Ninety undergraduates watched a 2-minute tape of a staged burglary that led to a violent shooting of three innocent victims. The subjects completed a baseline recall trial of 47 factual details in the tape. Subjects were next assigned randomly to one of three recall instruction conditions. One group was asked to recall details connected with their feelings. The second group was asked to recall details connected with external contexts. The control group received no instructions. The subjects completed two more recall trials using these instructions. Forty-eight hours later, they completed a fourth recall trial and a 25-item recognition test. All subjects had good recall, and the effects did not vary with the cues. Eyewitness memory improved with each successive recall trial. Memory improved even for the most violent aspects of the episode. Results suggest that eyewitness memory may be less fallible than previously believed and that long-term memory may be relatively permanent. Data tables, appendixes presenting instruments and methodological details, and 104 references. (Author abstract modified)