Anxiety and EWT

• What factors affect the accuracy of eyewitness testimony?

  Misleading information, anxiety
• What is anxiety defined as?

  An unpleasant emotional state of fear
• What physiological symptoms accompany anxiety?

  Increased heart rate, shallow breathing
• How does anxiety affect eyewitness testimony according to Johnson and Scott (1976)?

  High anxiety reduces accuracy of recall
• What were the two experimental conditions in Johnson and Scott's study?

  Low anxiety (no weapon) and high anxiety (weapon)
• What did participants see in the low anxiety condition of Johnson and Scott's study?

  A man holding a pen with grease
• What did participants see in the high anxiety condition of Johnson and Scott's study?

  A man holding a knife covered in blood
• What were the findings of Johnson and Scott's study regarding recall accuracy?

  49% accuracy in low anxiety, 33% in high anxiety
• What conclusion can be drawn from Johnson and Scott's study?

  Anxiety prevents attention and affects recall
• What is the weapon focus effect?

  Witnesses focus on central details like weapons
• What did Loftus and Burns (1982) study?

  The effect of violent vs. non-violent robbery films
• What were the findings of Loftus and Burns (1982)?

  Non-violent condition recalled more details
• What does the inverted 'U' theory explain about anxiety and recall?

  Optimal anxiety improves recall, too much decreases it
• What did Christianson & Hubinette (1993) find about eyewitnesses?

  Victims were more accurate than onlookers
• How long did recall last for victims in Christianson & Hubinette's study?

  Accurate recall lasted even after 15 months
• What is a strength of Loftus' research?

  It is highly replicable due to controlled experiments
• What is a limitation of Loftus' research regarding ecological validity?

  Tasks are artificial and not like real events
• What did Foster et al. (1994) find about real-life robbery identification?

  Identification was more accurate if perceived real
• What does contradictory evidence from Christianson and Hubinette suggest?

  Emotional arousal may enhance memory accuracy
• What ethical issues arise in anxiety research on EWT?

  Methods may cause psychological harm to participants
• What is the Yerkes-Dodson law?

  It describes the relationship between anxiety and performance
• What does the Yerkes-Dodson graph illustrate?

  Optimal anxiety leads to maximum recall accuracy
• What is one evaluation point of research into anxiety and EWT?

  There is contradictory evidence from real-life studies
• How might anxiety affect eyewitness testimony of the space shuttle explosion?

  Witnesses may focus on central details, reducing recall
• Who found that anxiety had a positive effect on EWT?

  Christianson and Hubinette
• Who found that anxiety had a negative effect on EWT?

  Loftus and Scott
• What is the weapon focus effect?

  Witnesses focus on the weapon, not details
• What law explains differences in the effect of anxiety on EWT?

  Yerkes-Dodson law
• What does the Yerkes-Dodson law state?

  Optimal anxiety improves performance, too much decreases it
• What is the Yerkes-Dodson graph?

  A graph illustrating anxiety and performance relationship
• What is one evaluation of research into anxiety and EWT?

  Research often breaks ethical guidelines
• How does anxiety affect eyewitness testimony according to psychological research?

  It can either enhance or impair recall accuracy
• What is the main focus of research on anxiety in eyewitness testimony?

  The effects of arousal on memory recall
• What is the relationship between anxiety and memory recall?

  Higher anxiety can lead to lower recall accuracy
• How do different studies contribute to understanding anxiety's effect on EWT?

  They provide conflicting evidence on anxiety's impact
• What is the significance of the findings from Loftus' research?

  They highlight the negative impact of anxiety on EWT
• What is the main conclusion from Christianson and Hubinette's study?

  Emotional arousal may enhance memory accuracy
• What ethical guidelines are often broken in anxiety research?

  Causing psychological harm and deception
• How does the artificial nature of Loftus' research affect its findings?

  It may undermine the ecological validity of results
• What is the impact of anxiety on eyewitness testimony according to the Yerkes-Dodson law?

  It suggests an optimal level of anxiety for recall