NCJ Number
171321
Journal
Law and Human Behavior Volume: 21 Issue: 5 Dated: (October 1997) Pages: 503-523
Date Published
1997
Length
21 pages
Annotation
This article reports on three experiments that tested the effects of co-witness information and suggestive questioning on the accuracy of eyewitness memory reports.
Abstract
When questioning a reluctant witness, investigators sometimes encourage the witness by providing information about what other witnesses have said. Three experiments tested the combined effects of such co-witness information and suggestive questioning on the accuracy of eyewitness memory reports. The first experiment was analogous to the experience of a witness who receives information from an interviewer or questioner about what other witnesses have already said, while the second and third experiments simulated the situation in which a witness receives information directly from a co-witness. In all three experiments, when participants received incorrect information about a co-witness's response, they were significantly more likely to give that incorrect response than if they received no co-witness information. This effect persisted in a delayed memory test 48 hours after the initial questioning session in the third experiment. Accuracy rates were lowest of all when incorrect co-witness information was paired with questioning that suggested an incorrect response. These results have implications not only for the immediate effects on the accuracy of eyewitness memory reports, but also for the impact that even one such inaccurate report can have on the manner in which a case is investigated. Notes, figures, table, references