Reconstruction Of Automobile Destruction: An Example Of The Interaction Between Language And Memory Elizabeth F. Loftus And John C. Palmer

Reconstruction of Automobile Destruction: An Example of the Interaction Between Language and Memory
Elizabeth F. Loftus and John C. Palmer
1974

Introduction
Lotus and Palmer analyze thedistorted memory of a complex event, more so a car accident. After a car accident, what people remember most about the details of the accident. For this instance, do the participants remember theduration of the accident and the speed at which the cars collided.
Witnesses of accidents are typically inaccurate remembering the speed, distance, and time (Bird 123). If anything, people tend toover-estimate the duration of complex events, it is difficult to judge the speed of the vehicle in general.
As a result of the inaccuracies recalling car accidents, implores how is the phrasing ofquestions influential of witness’s recollection of the accident? More so, how does the implication of the crash affect how the witnesses remember it. This is relevant because of leading questioned inCourt cases may influence reported evidence by witnesses, creating legal issues (“Rules” 3). There are certain parameters on what leading questions may be asked in court. Some questions suggest how theevent actually occurred and my influence the witness’s memory.
The aim of the study is to investigate how leading questions suggesting greater car movement will provoke greater perceived speedsof car accidents (Loftus 586).
Hypothesis
If leading questioning of a car accident suggests a greater magnitude of impact, then the witness will report greater speeds of the car (Loftus 587).Design
Participants were shown 7 car unique accidents and had to evaluate the accident directly after each video. Each questionnaire contained the same questions with the exception of the question tobe tested. The question to be tested was “About how fast were the cars going when they smashed each other” The description of impact, “smashed”, “collided”, “bumped”, “hit”, and “contacted”,...