Eye-closure improves memory for a witnessed event under naturalistic conditions

Abstract

Eye-closure may help people remember live and videotaped mundane events and videotaped violent events. The present study extended this research by examining memory for a forensically relevant live event (a staged verbal altercation) and by interviewing witnesses under naturalistic conditions. Ninety-six witnesses were interviewed either inside in a quiet setting or outside on a busy street, with eyes open or closed. In free recall, eye-closure significantly increased the number of correct details reported, without harming testimonial accuracy. These benefits were significant for witnesses interviewed inside but not for witnesses interviewed outside. This finding highlights the potential role of spontaneous mental context reinstatement in the eye-closure effect. In cued recall, eye-closure improved fine-grain correct recall of visual details for both groups of witnesses. From an applied perspective, the findings suggest that police interviewers should instruct witnesses to close their eyes, both during initial statements taken on the street and during full interviews conducted at the police station.

Keywords:

• eyewitness memory
• eye-closure
• investigative interviewing
• grain size
• mental context reinstatement
• environmental distraction

Acknowledgements

This research was supported by a Fulbright Visiting Scholarship awarded to Annelies Vredeveldt. We thank Lindsey Rhead for her invaluable assistance in this project; HaeRim Jin, Veronica Cortez, Alexandra Bennett-Roach, Erin Kearns, and Jacqueline Howe for their help with collecting, transcribing, and coding the data; and Graham Hitch, Alan Baddeley, and Dan Wright for their helpful feedback on earlier versions of the manuscript. Annelies Vredeveldt is now at the Department of Psychology, University of Cape Town.