Exam 16: Social Psychology and the Law

Which of the following techniques would a lawyer employ if she were using the story order method?

Margo was frightened and confused when a robber appeared at the convenience store where she works.It seemed that the only thing she could see was the gun he had pointed right in her face.Later, when Margo serves as an eyewitness, she may not be reliable because of problems she had at the ________ stage of memory processing.

Kim witnessed a robbery that occurred over the course of an hour across a rather wide street at night.Which of the following is NOT a factor hindering Kim's acquisition of the event?

Lawyers who present their case in story order present witnesses

What should police officers do to prevent false identifications during lineups?

If the research presented in the text (Simons & Chabris, 1999) applies, what could be missed when everyone is watching the car accident that just took place?

Arla is a 30-something, white female who works in an office downtown.She saw a pizza delivery person being beaten for his pizza and cash.Based on the own-race bias, she will be most accurate in recognizing the culprit if the suspect is

The authors of your text describe an incident in which a friend of theirs, Alan, found the body of an elderly neighbor.Despite obvious signs that she was murdered, Alan insisted that she died of old age.Why?

According to the authors, accurate eyewitness identification results from a series of three stages:

You are being held for questioning in a crime that you did not commit.The interrogation is going on for quite some time: what conditions would lead to any confession you make being seen as coerced?

You have just read the section on recovered memories in your text.Based on your reading, what would you say to a psychotherapist who suspects that her client has repressed memories of prior sexual abuse?

According to your text, composite face programs are to be avoided.Why is this?

Based on the research by Geraerts and colleagues (2007), which of the following is most likely to have corroborating evidence about their experience of childhood sexual abuse?

A study found that judges who presided over jury trials disagreed with the jury's verdict about ________ percent of the time.

Complete the analogy about memory processes.Retrieval: acquisition :: ________: ________.

A mechanic at a truck rental office described a muscular man with a baseball cap and black T?-shirt as the person who rented the truck that was eventually used in the bombing of the federal building in Oklahoma City.However, Timothy McVeigh was convicted, most likely worked alone, and did not resemble that description at all.The mechanic realized he had been confused and instead had described an innocent man who was at the truck rental office the day before McVeigh appeared there.This is a real-world example of faulty

You are sitting on a jury in which you are the only one that believes that the defendant is not guilty of the charges.What is the most likely outcome of your dissent?

If you were a prosecutor, what would you be most likely to do to convince the jury that the defendant is guilty?

The process whereby information obtained after an event alters memories of the event is known as

Joan has been seeing a therapist for several months.At one session, her therapist suggests that Joan's emotional difficulties may be due to sexual abuse as a child.Initially, Joan is unable to recall any such abuse.However, at a later session, she recalls an incident of abuse that she had suppressed for many years.Based on social-psychological research findings, Joan's claims should be