anxiety 2

• what is anxiety?

  state of emotional and physical arousal
• how does anxiety affect ewt?

  both positively and negatively
• negative effect (weapon focus)

  presence of weapon creates anxiety, leading to focus on weapon, reducing witness' recall for other details
• negative effects of anxiety procedure

  ppts believed taking part in lab study

  low-anxiety condition heard casual convo, saw man walk past with pen and greasy hands

  high-anxiety condition heard heated argument, the sound of breaking glass, man walked out holding a knife and bloody hands
• negative effects findings 


  ppts had to pick man from set of 50 photos

  49% seeing man carrying pen could identify him

  33% identified man holding knife

  tunnel theory argues people have enhanced memory for central events- weapon focus has this effect due to anxiety