6.6.3 Retrieval Enhancement
In addition to documenting factors that are associated with errors in witness testimony, psychologists have also identified techniques for enhancing the recall of events. One technique is the cognitive interview, which is based on supplementary techniques or mnemonics for enhancing memory retrieval (Fisher & Geiselman, 1992). This is discussed extensively in Chapter 7.
In operational contexts, resource limitations can make it difficult for the police to interview witnesses without delay. With this in mind, cognitive psychologists have developed the self-administered interview (SAI), which enables eyewitnesses to record, by themselves and as soon as possible, their account of the crime (Gabbert, Hope, & Fisher, 2009). To aid the witness in remembering, the SAI has instructions that draw upon cognitive techniques that research has shown to enhance the quality and accuracy of recall. Participants given the SAI immediately after viewing a critical incident have been shown to report more correct and accurate information a week later compared to control participants (Hope, Gabbert, Fisher, & Jamieson, 2014). Both the cognitive interview (e.g., Holliday, 2003) and the SAI (Gabbert, Hope, Fisher, & Jamieson, 2012) have been shown to decrease the reporting of erroneous post-event misinformation. Psychologists have also investigated other possible techniques for aiding witness recall. One method is the use of a timeline technique to help witnesses establish in their testimony the temporal context of the event (Hope, Mullis, & Gabbert, 2013).
Vulnerable people are often targeted as victims by people who commit crime (Westcott & Jones, 1999). The testimony of children and vulnerable adults is influenced by numerous factors (see Davies & Westcott, 1999). In the UK, a number of special measures can be enacted to assist people who are vulnerable when they are giving testimony (see Chapter 14 for a review of measures).
6.6.4 Do Confident Witnesses Make Accurate Witnesses?
If a witness reports that they are confident that the testimony they have given is accurate, does this mean that the testimony is in all likelihood accurate? Research has shown that the relationship between confidence and accuracy can be complex, depending on the circumstances (Luus & Wells, 1994). Confidence can predict the likely accuracy of a witness’ testimony (Wixted, Mickes, Clark, Gronlund, & Roediger, 2015). The relationship between confidence and accuracy will be strongest when confidence is assessed soon after testimony is given, and if the witness has not received erroneous feedback about the accuracy of their testimony (e.g. Bradfield, Wells, & Olson, 2002). Initial confidence can increase over time, however. For example, it is common for witnesses to be repeatedly questioned at various stages about what they saw, and confidence can increase across interviews, particularly for speculative information (Poole & White, 1991). Similarly, people often feel under great pressure to provide useful testimonies. Putting a lot of effort into the retrieval process could make people feel more confident, without actually having a positive influence on accuracy (Shaw & Zerr, 2003).
6.6.5 The Accuracy-Informativeness Trade-off
When witnesses are questioned by the police, they face competing demands. On the one hand, they are in a role that requires them to report as much information as they possibly can about the crime that they witnessed. On the other hand, the testimony they provide should also be accurate. The attempt to resolve these competing demands is known as the accuracy-informativeness trade-off. How do witnesses resolve this dilemma?
One way in which they might do it is by regulating the granularity, or level of detail they provide in their responses. Weber and Brewer (2008) showed participants a video of a staged bank robbery. Participants responded to questions that required both fine-grained (e.g. a specific colour, or a specific number) and coarse-grained (e.g. the overall tone, or a numeric range) answers. For example, when asked “What colour was the robber’s hair?” participants provided the specific colour (e.g. brown) and the overall tone (e.g. dark). Participants also rated their confidence in the accuracy of the answers that they gave. Afterwards, participants were shown the fine-grained and coarse-grained answers that they gave, and for each question, they indicated which answer they would volunteer if they had to make a statement to the police about the crime that they had witnessed. The results indicated that participants volunteered fine-grained answers only when it was likely to be correct. Furthermore, participants tended to volunteer the answers that had higher confidence ratings. These results suggest that confidence might play an important role in whether an eyewitness volunteers information, and the level of detail of the information they report.
6.7 CONCLUSIONS
This chapter has provided an overview of recent research topics on witness memory, including factors that are associated with the quality and accuracy of testimony given by witnesses when they remember the criminal events they experienced. Given the range of situational and personal factors that affect remembering, it is perhaps not surprising that witnesses to the Paris attacks provided different accounts of the terrifying events that unfolded. We have also considered the great strides that research has made in helping to understand how the quality and accuracy of the testimony given can be enhanced by criminal investigators.
6.8 SUMMARY
The accuracy of witness memory can be affected at all three different stages of memory, including encoding, storage and retrieval.
Wells has distinguished between estimator and system variables, in an effort to identify how the legal system might work to improve the accuracy of witness testimony.
Witness factors such as age and intoxication are associated with the accuracy of testimony.
Research has investigated a number of factors that affect memory encoding, including stress, change blindness, stereotyping and weapon exposure.
A number of factors that affect memory storage have been investigated, including exposure to post-event information, the emotional nature of the memory, and delay.
Retrieval factors associated with accuracy have also been studied by researchers, including question format, suggestive questioning, and the informativeness-accuracy trade-off.
ESSAY/DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
The quality and accuracy of witness memory can be affected at every stage of memory. Describe the three stages of memory, and discuss how the quality and accuracy of memory can be influenced at each stage.
Define estimator and system variables, and provide examples of each.
What are some witness factors that have been associated with the quality and accuracy of testimony?
What are some post-event influences that might have affected the accuracy of testimony given by witnesses to the Paris attacks?
ANNOTATED READING LIST
Loftus, E. F. (1996). Eyewitness testimony (2nd edn). Harvard: Harvard University Press. This book, written by one of the best-known eyewitness researchers, provides a very useful introduction to many of the topics outlined in this chapter.
Nash, R. A., Wheeler, R. L., & Hope, L. (2015). On the persuadability of memory: Is changing people’s memories no more than changing their minds? British Journal of Psychology, 106(2), 308–326. This paper examines the overlap and differences between autobiographical memory distortion and attitude change.
Toglia, M. P., Read, J., Ross, D. F., & Lindsay, R. C. L. (2007). The handbook of eyewitness psychology, Vol I: Memory for events. Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. This book offers comprehensive and in-depth coverage of issues relevant to psychological research into eyewitness memory.
Wells, G. L., & Olson, E. A. (2003). Eyewitness testimony. Annual Review of Psychology, 54(1), 277–295. This article reviews experimental research on the factors affecting eyewitness memory, including characteristics of the witness, the witnessed event, line-ups, and the problems inherent in research into eyewitness memory.
Wells, G. L. (1978). Applied eyewitness-testimony research: System variables and estimator variables. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 36(12), 1546–1557. The highly influential article that first distinguished between es
timator and system variables and their impact on eyewitness memory.
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