Improving Accuracy Eyewitness Testimony

• Findings concerning the unreliability of eyewitness testimony accounts have led researchers to attempt to devise methods for improving retrieval. One of those methods is the Cognitive Interview
• The cognitive interview is a way of getting witnesses to retrieve more detail than they do in standard interviews.
• The Cognitive Interview involves four main techniques:

  • Report Everything
  • Reinstate Context
  • Recall from a Changed Perspective
  • Change the Order
• Research into the Effectiveness of the Cognitive Interview:

  Geiselman et al got participants to view a film of a violent crime, after 48 hours were interviewed by a policeman using one of 3 methods. Either a cognitive interview, standard interview, or a hypnosis interview. The number of facts accurately recalled and number of errors made were recorded.
• Results showed the average number of recalled facts for cognitive interview were 41, for hypnosis it was 38 and for standard interview it was 29. There was no significant difference in the number of errors in each condition
• A strength of the cognitive interview is the research consistantly supports the view that it is an effective technique for getting more detail from witnesses. Much of this research is conducted in controlled conditions, ensuring good internal validity.
• A weakness of cognitive interview is that it takes a lot of time to complete compared to a standard interview.
• A limitation is that some of the questions asked in the cognitive interview, e.g. 'change the perspective', may be challenging for young children and adults with learning disabilities