NCJ Number
56969
Journal
Police Chief Volume: 46 Issue: 5 Dated: (MAY 1979) Pages: 62-64
Date Published
1979
Length
3 pages
Annotation
THIS ARTICLE DISCUSSES A STUDY ON THE USE OF HYPNOSIS TO IMPROVE THE MEMORY OF EYEWITNESSES, AND INDICATES THAT HYPNOSIS SHOULD BE USED WITH GREAT CAUTION IN POLICE INVESTIGATIONS TO CORROBORATE MATERIAL EVIDENCE.
Abstract
CONTRARY TO THEORIES EXPRESSED IN MANY ARTICLES OF POPULAR PSYCHOLOGY, THE HUMAN MIND DOES NOT RETAIN ALL OF THE INFORMATION PRESENTED TO IT. THUS HYPNOSIS CANNOT BE USED TO UNCOVER ACCURATE INFORMATION WHEN SUBJECTS' MEMORIES ARE NOT THEMSELVES ACCURATE. FURTHERMORE, EXPERIMENTATION INDICATES THAT SUBJECTS QUESTIONED UNDER HYPNOSIS ARE MORE LIKELY TO GIVE INCORRECT ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS WHICH SUGGEST AN ANSWER. A GROUP OF 16 PEOPLE OF VARIOUS HYPNOTIC SUSCEPTIBILITY WAS SHOWN A VIDEOTAPE OF A HIT-AND-RUN ACCIDENT. SOME WERE QUESTIONED NORMALLY ABOUT THE ACCIDENT, AND OTHERS WERE QUESTIONED UNDER HYPNOSIS. QUESTIONS WERE DESIGNED TO BE 'OBJECTIVE' OR 'LEADING'. THOSE HYPNOTIZED MADE TWICE AS MANY ERRORS WHEN ANSWERING LEADING QUESTIONS AS THOSE IN THE CONTROL GROUP. THE HYPNOTIZED SUBJECTS WERE ALSO LESS ACCURATE ON THE OBJECTIVE QUESTIONS, IN SPITE OF THE FACT THAT PARTICIPANTS FELT HYPNOSIS HAD IMPROVED THEIR MEMORIES. NOT ONLY WILL HYPNOTIZED SUBJECTS MAKE ERRORS, BUT THEY WILL BE UNAWARE OF THE ERRORS. ADDITIONAL RESEARCH HAS INDICATED THAT PEOPLE DO NOT RETRIEVE EXACT COPIES OF WITNESSED EVENTS. THE CONSTRUCTIVE THEORY OF MEMORY MAINTAINS THAT THE MEMORY OF AN EVENT MAY CHANGE AFTER THE EVENT IS INITIALLY WITNESSED. IN ANY CASE, FURTHER RESEARCH IS WARRANTED IF HYPNOSIS IS TO BE USEFUL IN LAW ENFORCEMENT. REFERENCES ARE PROVIDED. (TWK)