Eyewitness memory: the impact of a negative mood during encoding and/or retrieval upon recall of a non-emotive event

Thorley, Craig; Dewhurst, Stephen A.; Abel, Joseph W.; Knott, Lauren M.

Abstract

The police often appeal for eyewitnesses to events that were unlikely to have been emotive when observed. An eyewitness, however, may be in a negative mood whilst encoding or retrieving such events as mood can be influenced by a range of personal, social, and environmental factors. For example, bad weather can induce a negative mood. This experiment compared the impact of negative and neutral moods during encoding and/or retrieval upon eyewitness recall of a non-emotive event. A negative mood during encoding had no impact upon the number of correct details recalled (provided participants were in a neutral mood at retrieval) but a negative mood during retrieval impaired the number of correct details recalled (provided participants were in a neutral mood at encoding). A negative mood at both time points enhanced the number of correct details recalled, demonstrating a mood-dependent memory enhancement. The forensic implications of these findings are discussed.

Citation

Thorley, C., Dewhurst, S. A., Abel, J. W., & Knott, L. M. (2016). Eyewitness memory: the impact of a negative mood during encoding and/or retrieval upon recall of a non-emotive event. Memory, 24(6), 838-852. https://doi.org/10.1080/09658211.2015.1058955

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: May 29, 2015
• Online Publication Date: Aug 14, 2015
• Publication Date: Jul 2, 2016
• Deposit Date: Feb 4, 2016
• Publicly Available Date: Nov 23, 2017
• Journal: Memory
• Print ISSN: 0965-8211
• Electronic ISSN: 1464-0686
• Publisher: Routledge
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 24
• Issue: 6
• Pages: 838-852
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09658211.2015.1058955
• Keywords: Emotion, Eyewitness, Memory, Mood, Mood-dependent, Testimony
• Public URL: https://hull-repository.worktribe.com/output/384883
• Publisher URL: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09658211.2015.1058955
• Additional Information: Peer Review Statement: The publishing and review policy for this title is described in its Aims & Scope.; Aim & Scope: http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?show=aimsScope&journalCode=pmem20