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PAPER 1 PSYCH
Memory
Misleading Information On EWT AO1
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Created by
chloe denton
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Cards (13)
If the wording of a question leads someone to an answer this
decreases
the
accuracy
of EWT
LOFTUS &
PALMER
showed students film clips of
car accidents
and asked them questions
In the
critical
question, they were asked to estimate how
fast
the cars were going when they contacted/smashed
The
critical
verb changed

For
'contacted'
, the mean estimate was
31.8mph
, whereas for 'smashed' it was 40.5
The wording of the question likely
distorted
the
schemas
of the participants
The
substitution
explanation suggests
memory
is changed
When Loftus later asked if they'd seen broken glass (when there was none), participants said
'smashed'
more often than
'hit'
Post-event discussion also
decreases
accuracy of EWT
GABBERT
showed participants
separate
clips of the same crime from different points of view
If they discussed before being interviewed,
71
% of participants included details they
hadn't
seen, but others had
A
control
group with
no
discussion included no details they hadn't seen
Memory contamination


When discussion
distorts
individual memories, although it could be memory conformity - just agreeing with others for
social
approval
So there may be
no actual memory
change