False Memories and Eyewitness Testimony: How They Relate

📚 Quick Study Guide

• 🧠 False Memory: A memory that is either partly or wholly inaccurate, but accepted as a true memory by the individual.
• 🧐 Eyewitness Testimony: An account given by people of an event they have witnessed. Its accuracy can be affected by many psychological factors.
• 🚨 Misinformation Effect: Exposure to misleading information after an event can alter how people remember the event itself.
• 🗣️ Source Monitoring Error: Occurs when a memory derived from one source is misattributed to another source.
• 🤔 Reconstructive Memory: The process of assembling information from stored knowledge when a memory is retrieved. This process is prone to distortions.
• ⚖️ Implications for Justice: False memories and biases can have severe consequences for eyewitness testimony, affecting court decisions and justice.

Practice Quiz

1. What is a false memory?
   1. A completely accurate recollection of an event.
   2. A memory that is partly or wholly inaccurate but feels real.
   3. A memory that is intentionally fabricated.
   4. A memory that fades over time.
2. The misinformation effect primarily involves:
   1. Forgetting details over time.
   2. Distorting memories due to exposure to misleading information after an event.
   3. Enhanced memory recall due to stress.
   4. Repressing traumatic memories.
3. What does 'source monitoring error' refer to?
   1. The inability to remember where a memory came from.
   2. The tendency to only remember positive events.
   3. The accurate recollection of a memory's source.
   4. The distortion of memories due to emotional arousal.
4. Reconstructive memory suggests that:
   1. Memories are stored perfectly and retrieved without changes.
   2. Memories are assembled from stored knowledge and can be distorted.
   3. Memory retrieval is always accurate under hypnosis.
   4. Memories are primarily influenced by genetics.
5. Which of the following can significantly impact the accuracy of eyewitness testimony?
   1. The temperature of the room during questioning.
   2. Leading questions asked by investigators.
   3. The color of the suspect's clothing.
   4. The time of day the testimony is given.
6. How can stress affect eyewitness testimony?
   1. Stress always enhances memory accuracy.
   2. Stress can impair memory encoding and recall.
   3. Stress has no impact on memory.
   4. Stress only affects memory for trivial details.
7. What is one ethical concern regarding the use of eyewitness testimony in court?
   1. Eyewitness testimony is always completely reliable.
   2. Eyewitness testimony is not subject to biases or errors.
   3. The potential for false memories to lead to wrongful convictions.
   4. Eyewitness testimony is inadmissible in court.