Memory accuracy, suggestibility and credibility in investigative interviews with native and non-native eyewitnesses

Frontiers in Psychology

Psychology

Torun Lindholm¹  Philip U. Gustafsson¹  Charlotte Alm¹  Arman Raver² 

[1] Department of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden;null;

关键词: investigative interview;    confidence-accuracy relationship;    memory accuracy;    suggestibility;    credibility judgment;    language barrier;    non-native speaker;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1240822

 received in 2023-06-15, accepted in 2023-08-07,  发布年份 2023

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

Legal practitioners sometimes obtain eyewitness testimonies from non-native language speakers, yet few studies examine the effects of language in investigative interviews. Here, we investigate how testifying in a non-native vs. native language affects memory accuracy, susceptibility to suggestions, and witnesses perceived credibility. After viewing a mock-crime film, participants in Study 1 (N = 121) testified through (1) free recall, (2) cued recall and (3) the Gudjonsson Suggestibility Scales adapted to the crime scenario used in the present study either in their native (Swedish) or a non-native (English) language. They also rated their confidence in their memories, self-perceived credibility and cognitive effort. Native and non-native witnesses did not differ in memory accuracy, susceptibility to suggestions, self-rated credibility or cognitive effort. Non-native (vs. native) speakers did however report lower confidence in their memories. In Study 2, another group of participants (N = 202) were presented with the testimonies from Study 1, and judged witnesses’ credibility. Non-native witnesses were judged as less credible than native speakers. Thus, while the lower confidence exhibited by non-native eyewitnesses did not correspond to their actual memory accuracy, it influenced observers’ judgments of their performance. The results provide important knowledge for legal practices when evaluating the reliability of testimonies from non-native vs. native speaking eyewitnesses.

【 授权许可】

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Copyright © 2023 Raver, Lindholm, Gustafsson and Alm.