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To what extent has psychological research shown eyewitness testimony to be unreliable?
Member rating: No Rating | Words: | Submitted: Mon Dec 11 2006
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To what extent has psychological research shown eyewitness testimony to be unreliable? Eyewitness testimony is the evidence that is provided by individuals whom have witnessed an event, crime or happening. EWT relies solely on recall from memory and normally includes accounts of events and descriptions of persons involved. Although EWT is used largely by the police on identifying suspects of a crime, giving great cause for concern over policing methods in our society. It has been proven by psychologists not to be entirely reliable. It has also been shown that it is not the witness themselves that are unreliable but more so the methods used by professionals to obtain testimonial statements. The main issue concerned with the unreliability of EWT lies in the effect of language. A school of thought is provoked by the studies of Elizabeth Loftus. She has carried out various experiments concerned with leading questions and language. She believes...
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