Can Laboratory Findings on Eyewitness Testimony Be Generalized to the Real World? An Archival Analysis of the Influence of Violence, Weapon Presence, and Age on Eyewitness Accuracy

Abstract

The authors conducted 2 studies to assess the effects of levels of violence, the presence of a weapon, and the age of the witness on the accuracy of eyewitness testimony in real-life crime situations. Descriptions of offenders were taken from eyewitnesses' statements obtained by the police and were compared with the actual details of the same offenders obtained on arrest. The results showed that eyewitnesses tended to recall the offenders' hairstyle and hair color most accurately. None of the effects for the level of violence, the presence of a weapon, or age approached statistical significance, with the exception that, in the 1st study, accuracy in describing hair color was better when associated with high levels of violence and in cases of rape. It is argued that caution must be exercised in generalizing from laboratory studies of eyewitness testimony to actual crime situations.

Key Words:

• age
• eyewitnesses
• eyewitness testimony
• memory accuracy
• weapon focus