Psychology of Testimony

Recommended Prerequisites

NA

Teaching Methods

Lecturing; analysis and discussion of situations of practical relevance to the testimony in forensic context

Learning Outcomes

Objectives:

- Understanding the nuclear importance of memory in witnessing

- Knowing key aspects concerning the accuracy of the testimonies

 

Learning Outcomes:

- To know how to analyze implications of the acquired knowledge on tesimonies for psychological practice in the forensic scope, namely the malleabilty of memory

- To know best practices regarding testimony gathering and perpetrator identification procedures

Work Placement(s)

No

Syllabus

Introduction: Guidelines on Memory and the Law (British Psychological Association).

 

1- Memory for events

Basic memory processes; testimonial distortions (false memories and interrogative suggestibility), cheating detection and testimonial validation.

 

2-Memory for people

Memory for faces: encoding, recognition / identification and recall.

 

3-Memory for conversation: statements, narratives and disputes.

 

4-Variables that affect the witness accuracy

4.1-Estimator variables: characteristics of the witness, perpetrator and the event.

4.2-System Variables: Identification of suspects (e.g., line-ups) and interview protocols (e.g., enhanced cognitive interviewing and flexible interview protocol (NICHHD)).

4.3-Post-diction variables / indicia of reliability: witness confidence /certainty and response latency.

 

5-Developmental aspects: autobiographical memory in children and memory in the testimony of older adults.

 

6-Earwitnesses

Head Lecturer(s)

Maria Salomé Ferreira Estima Pinho

Assessment Methods

Assessment
Midterm exam: Multiple choice questions and essay questions requiring short composition on subjects that are selected by the student; the answers to these subjects will be prepared during the semester under teacher's guidance: 100.0%

Bibliography

Brewer, N. & Douglass, A. B. (2019). Psychological science and the law. New York: Guilford.

Cliford, B. R., & Bull, R. (2017), The psychology of person identification (vol. 6). Oxford: Routledge.

Gudjonsson, G.H. (2003) The psychology of interrogations and confessions: A handbook. Chichester: Wiley.

Johansson, S., Stefansen, K., Bakketeig, E., & Kaldal, A. (2017). Collaborating against child abuse: Exploring the Nordic BARNAHUS Model. Cham: Palgrave.

Lampinen, J. M., Neuschatz, J. S., & Cling, A.D. (2012). The psychology of eyewitness identification. Hove: Psychology Press.

Lindsay, R. C. L., D. F. Ross, J. D. Read, and M. P. Toglia, eds. 2007. The handbook of eyewitness psychology: Memory for people. Vol. 2. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum

Toglia, M. P., J. D. Read, D. F. Ross, and R. C. L. Lindsay, eds. 2007. The handbook of eyewitness psychology: Memory for events. Vol. 1. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.

Vrij, A. (2008). Detecting lies and deceit: Pitfalls and opportunities (2nd ed.). Chichester: Wiley.