scholarly journals RE-EVALUATING THE CREDIBILITY OF EYEWITNESS TESTIMONY: THE MISINFORMATION EFFECT AND THE OVERCRITICAL JUROR

Episteme ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 255-279
Author(s):  
Katherine Puddifoot
Keyword(s):  
Human Memory ◽  
Eyewitness Testimony ◽  
Misinformation Effect ◽  
False Information

ABSTRACTEyewitnesses are susceptible to recollecting that they experienced an event in a way that is consistent with false information provided to them after the event. The effect is commonly called the misinformation effect. Because jurors tend to find eyewitness testimony compelling and persuasive, it is argued that jurors are likely to give inappropriate credence to eyewitness testimony, judging it to be reliable when it is not. It is argued that jurors should be informed about psychological findings on the misinformation effect, to ensure that they lower the credence that they give to eyewitness testimony to reflect the unreliability of human memory that is demonstrated by the effect. Here I present a new argument, the overcritical juror argument, to support the conclusion that eyewitnesses are likely to make inappropriate credence assignments to eyewitness testimony. Whereas previously authors have argued that jurors will tend to give too much credence to eyewitness testimony, I identify circumstances in which jurors will give too little credence to some pieces of testimony. In my view jurors should be informed by psychological findings relating to the misinformation effect to ensure that they do not lower the credence that they give to eyewitness testimony when they should not.

Eyewitness Testimony

2018 ◽  
pp. 31-43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth F. Loftus
Keyword(s):  
Legal System ◽  
Expert Testimony ◽  
Human Memory ◽  
Eyewitness Testimony ◽  
Court Cases ◽  
Legal Cases ◽  
Repressed Memories ◽  
Witness Memory

This chapter describes the author’s studies of human memory and eyewitness testimony that drew her into a long involvement with the legal system. The history describes efforts on the part of lawyers and eyewitness scientists to introduce expert testimony about witness memory into legal cases. The author discusses the contamination of accurate memories due to misinformation after the fact, such as witnesses talking to one another or erroneous media, and the role of repressed memories in court cases. The chapter includes a brief description of the rocky path from early resistance to ultimate appreciation of the science and its usefulness in legal cases.

scholarly journals Memory Training as a Method for Reducing the Misinformation Effect

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Malwina Szpitalak ◽  
Adrianna Woltmann ◽  
Romuald Polczyk ◽  
Magdalena Kękuś
Keyword(s):  
Human Memory ◽  
Memory Training ◽  
Misinformation Effect ◽  
Memory Errors ◽  
Immediate Recall ◽  
Truth Effect ◽  
Training Courses ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Original Information

Abstract The two experiments presented in this study investigate the impact of memory training on the misinformation effect. This effect is particularly important in the forensic context as exposing a witness to misinformation may adversely affect the content of their testimony. During the training, the participants were acquainted with seven (Experiment 1) or six (Experiment 2) types of memory errors. It was expected that knowledge of the unreliability of human memory would reduce the misinformation effect and therefore improve the quality of testimony. These hypotheses were confirmed in both experiments. The efficacy of both the complete and reduced training courses was not statistically different. Additionally, in Experiment 1 the effectiveness of warning against misinformation was replicated: respondents warned about misinformation were more resistant to it than those not warned. The tainted truth effect was also present: people warned against non-existent misinformation had lower correctness in the memory test than non-warned ones. Finally, immediate recall of the content of the original information had no impact on the misinformation effect.

scholarly journals Eyewitness Science and the Legal System

2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth F. Loftus
Keyword(s):  
Legal System ◽  
Human Memory ◽  
Eyewitness Testimony ◽  
Success Story ◽  
Legal Cases ◽  
Time Period ◽  
Potential Problems ◽  
With Memory

For more than four decades, I have been studying the malleable nature of human memory. For most of this time period, I have also played a role as a consultant or expert in many legal cases that hinged on eyewitness testimony or other memory evidence. Here I describe some of the science that reveals how error prone eyewitnesses can be. Getting the legal field to recognize potential problems with memory evidence, and taking steps to solve those problems, has been a continuing struggle. It is a success story worth sharing.

Forensic Applications of Social Memory Research

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen Paterson ◽  
Lauren Monds
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Research ◽  
Legal System ◽  
Social Memory ◽  
Eyewitness Memory ◽  
Eyewitness Testimony ◽  
False Information ◽  
Memory Research ◽  
Legal Opinions

Within the legal system an assumption exists that witness testimonies should be independent of one another; however the evidence suggests that this is frequently not the case. Witnesses commonly discuss the event with each other. It is important to determine the effects of cowitness information on the validity of eyewitness testimony. It is generally recognized that discussion between witnesses can be detrimental; the possibility of false information (or information that the participant never saw) entering recall is a key concern. We review the prevalence of cowitness discussion, legal opinions about cowitness discussion, and finally experimental research investigating the effects of discussion on eyewitness memory. We also provide some suggestions of how to prevent cowitness discussion and contamination of testimony.

Normal false memory

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Armin Schnider
Keyword(s):  
False Memory ◽  
Healthy Subjects ◽  
False Memories ◽  
Human Memory ◽  
Eyewitness Testimony

Is it possible to be completely convinced about a memory and yet to err? Yes, it is! Human memory is dynamic and at times falls victim to its own associative power. This chapter examines under what conditions healthy subjects may succumb to false memories and how children differ from adults in their susceptibility to false memory. It looks at how reliable apparently crystal-clear memories called flashbulb memories really are. Under certain conditions, it is even possible to implant entirely invented memories, a notion particularly pertinent in the realm of eyewitness testimony. Normal false memory appears to have different mechanisms than pathological confabulation.

Teaching about Repressed Memories of Childhood Sexual Abuse and Eyewitness Testimony

1997 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 250-255 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leslie A. Miller
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Childhood Sexual Abuse ◽  
Practical Interest ◽  
Human Memory ◽  
Eyewitness Testimony ◽  
Legal Issues ◽  
Course Evaluations ◽  
Graduate Course ◽  
Repressed Memories ◽  
Student Thought

Victims and witnesses to crimes frequently must remember information about what they saw. What they remember can dramatically affect the outcome of cases and the lives of the victims, the accused, and family members. This article describes an under-graduate course that examines human memory and its role in two applied legal issues: repressed memories of childhood sexual abuse and eyewitness testimony. Because these issues involve applying memory to real-world situations, and because they directly and indirectly affect many people, courses dealing with these topics hold intrinsic and practical interest for students. Student thought pieces, class discussions, and course evaluations indicate that students enjoyed and benefited from a course on these applied and polemic issues.

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