How reliable is Eyewitness testimony, and what can be done to improve it Essay Example

meaningful picture of sensory input is created by filling in the gaps. Trankell (1972) provides an example of this where a lawyer travelling in a taxi reported seeing an old man falling out of the open door of a car ahead and lying on the road. However, it turned out that the old man was a pedestrian who had been knocked down and was not a passenger in the car ahead.

In 1988, Lloyd-Bostock noted that one could construct a plausible reality from limited visual information. Additionally, Clifford and Scott's research from 1978 suggests that events without violence are better recalled. Loftus and Burns' study in 1982 used a fake robbery depicted at varying levels of aggression, and viewers who saw the violent version were seven times less likely to recall important details accurately compared to those who saw the non-violent version. Lloyd-Bostock also suggested that witnessing a real crime can disrupt information processing more than seeing a simulated one. Finally, Holmes' 1974 research indicates that stress impairs recall.

Different studies have produced conflicting results regarding whether participants are better at recalling events than bystanders. Some argue in favor of participants (Cohen; Faulkner, 1988; Yuille, Davies, Gibling, Marxsen, & Porter, 1994), while others find that involvement does not impact recall accuracy (Saywitz, Geiselman & Bornstein, 1992; Farringdon & Lambert, 1993; Roberts & Blades, 1998). The 'Serial Position Effect' was first identified by Ebbinghaus (1885/1964) in his early experiments on learning and retention. This effect describes a higher likelihood of remembering items at the beginning ('primacy effect') and the end ('recency effect') of a list, compared to those in the middle. In the 1960s, Broadbent expanded on this

concept. Atkinson and Shiffrin's 'Buffer Theory' (1971) further developed it, suggesting that information enters a 'sensory store' briefly before being attended to and passed on to 'short term memory' (STM). STM acts as a buffer to prevent LTM from processing too much information at once and can retain seven (+-2) chunks of information. Early chunks remain in STM longer and are therefore more likely to be transferred to LTM. Later chunks remain in STM and are easily recalled.

(Ainsworth, 1998) There are various factors that can have a detrimental impact on memory recall. According to Milne and Bull (1999), sensory information obtained through one sense can be altered by another sense. Loftus (1977) demonstrated this phenomenon by proving how visual information could be influenced by auditory signals. Our brain attempts to reconcile these contradictions to align with our expectations. Researchers like Loftus continued their work on reconciling conflicting memories through "Compromise Memory," especially when the conflicting information is introduced close to the recall requirement (Hall, Loftus, & Tousignant, 1984). In addition, the words used as prompts for recall can also play a significant role in influencing memory recollection, as demonstrated in Loftus and Palmer's (1974) experiments. During this experiment, participants were shown a series of slides featuring a car crash and asked whether they observed broken glass when the vehicles smashed or when they collided; 32 percent and 16 percent respectively claimed to have seen broken glass where there was none.

It should be noted that when it comes to suggestion, individuals are typically more resistant to suggestions pertaining to central details as opposed to peripheral ones, according to Yuille and Cutshall’s (1986) research. Defense attorneys commonly

challenge peripheral detail inconsistencies in order to undermine core elements in testimony. In regards to stereotypes, Hollin (1989) conducted a study using a photo of a suspect with green eyes and blonde hair. Results indicated that 92% of participants correctly identified the hair color; however, of those participants, half reported that the eyes were blue due to the influence of stereotypes. Memory can be biased by unintentional partisanship when recollecting events that hold personal meaning, which can lead to misconceptions that align with our expectations.

According to Hasdorf and Cantril (1954), as well as Boon and Davies (1996), a group of sports supporters were presented with several on-field confrontations during a match. The fans who were biased made inaccurate determinations about who caused the violation. We create multiple scripts or schemata to assist us in handling frequent, repetitive occurrences, as per Trankell (1972). Our past experiences and established procedures aid in streamlining the process. We fill in the gaps when an incident doesn't match the script.

According to Bower, Black, and Turner's (1979) study, individuals recalling a brief restaurant story often added details that were not present in the original text. Meanwhile, suppressed childhood traumatic events can also contribute to controversies surrounding repressed memory (Freud, 1917; Memon, Vrij & Bull, 1988). The reliability of recovered memories is hotly debated since vulnerable subjects are commonly involved (Conway, 1997). Furthermore, research shows that adults can be misled into believing they witnessed an event they only heard or read about - even law students. In fact, participants repeatedly interrogated about an air crash gave detailed accounts of what they believed happened in Crombag et al.'s (1996) study.

According to Atkinson and

Shiffrin (1971), retrograde amnesia can result in the loss of events leading up to a traumatic event that causes unconsciousness, depending on sensory activity. Insufficient time for processing information into long-term memory from short-term memory is the cause. Meanwhile, Wells, Lindsay, and Ferguson (1979) and Cutler and Penrod (1995) indicate that juries are more likely to trust confident witnesses without considering their accuracy. However, Loftus (1979) has found that confidence does not always equate with accuracy. Eyewitnesses' confidence may lead them to genuinely believe in their testimony's veracity even when it is incorrect. This misconception has resulted in numerous wrongful convictions such as Deckinga, Father Pagano, and Murphy where multiple eyewitnesses identified an innocent person as guilty. According to Huff (1987), almost 60% of 500 cases were incorrectly attributed due to eyewitness error. Cutler and Penrod suggest presenting expert evidence in court to assist juries in comprehending the possibility of eyewitness error.

According to Yarmley (1996), the elderly tend to make more errors and require more time to comprehend information. This is especially true when their attention is divided among multiple tasks. Fruzetti et al (1992) noted that individual perceptions of an event differ based on their occupation and familiarity with the situation. Police officers and security guards, while not necessarily better at remembering things in general, tend to perform well when describing events they have encountered professionally.

Research has shown that individuals who know ahead of time that they will be questioned about an event tend to pay more attention and can provide more accurate information compared to those who do not (Clifford; Richards, 1977; Lloyd-Bostock, 1988). To address this issue, Fisher and Geiselman developed the

Cognitive Interview Technique (CIT) in the 1980s, which has been revised and reviewed since. In early tests, even high school students who received only four hours of training were able to elicit twice as much information from witnesses as police officers with many years of experience (Fisher ; Geiselman, 1992; Geiselman, Fisher, Cohen, Holland ; Surtes, 1986). The CIT method emphasizes the interviewee and encourages them to recall all details of the event without editing or guessing.

According to Milne and Bull (1999), during an interview, it is important to consider the sensory elements of the event being recounted, like emotions, smells, and physical surroundings. To encourage relative rather than absolute judgements, interviewers should ask questions like "was he taller than you?" instead of "how tall was he?" To assist witnesses in providing accurate descriptions, props like pictures of different types of knives could be used for weapons or to demonstrate mannerisms. Additionally, Fisher and Geiselman (1992) recommend recreating the context of the event before questioning begins to aid in recall.

Recalling details of an event can be aided by considering how one was feeling, whether they were rushed, and what they were doing prior to the event. Additionally, triggering visual recall from a different sense modality can further aid in remembering these details (Farringdon ; Lambert, 1997). To ensure thorough recollection, it is recommended to repeat interviews and encourage the witness to recall even seemingly forgotten details. It is important to note that just because a piece of information cannot be immediately retrieved does not mean it was not stored. However, pressuring the witness may lead them to invent false details in order to please the

interviewer (Ainsworth, 1998).

According to Memon, Bull, and Smith (1995), increased motivation on the part of interviewers may be responsible for some of the improvements attributed to CIT. Nonetheless, Ainsworth (1998) contends that CIT has led to improved recovery of detail while resulting in minimal inaccurate information. On the other hand, CIT does not enhance a witness's ability to identify suspects, as Fisher, Quigley, Brock, Chin, and Cutler (1990) have observed. This may be due to the fact that recognition employs different memory skills than recall, as indicated by Bahrick, Bahrick, and Wittlinger (1975) and Lloyd-Bostock (1988). Baldwin and Bedward (1991) suggest recording all witness interviews to minimize the risks associated with summary writing by interviewers in generating final statements. Written statements produced later on often include jargon and unreported inconsistencies or omissions that can be used against the witness in cross-examination by the defense. According to experienced barristers, this is a key factor underlying wrongful acquittals.

(Heaton-Armstrong & Wolchover, 1999) indicates that psychological research on eyewitness reliability has led to improvements in police interview techniques. However, interviewers still require training on factors that can affect recall.