1. Loftus and Palmer (1974)

2.  Reconstruction of automobile destruction: an example of the interaction between language and memory  Field of psychology: Cognitive  Type of study: Laboratory experiment

3. Aim and Context “I do solemnly, sincerely and truly declare and affirm that the evidence I shall give shall be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth”

4. Why is it important?  The Innocence project An organisation which works to clear the names of wrongly convicted people They claim that eyewitness misidentification is the greatest single cause of wrongful convictions in the USA, convictions that were later overturned by DNA evidence.  The study by Loftus and Palmer took place in 1974. Why is this relevant to the context?

5. Carmichael (1932)  You have a minute to remember the pictures on the page  When the minute is up, you should turn your page over, and wait for me to tell you to reproduce the images.  Compare your drawing with your partners. Are there any differences? How do we explain these results?

6. Carmichael (1932)  Carmichael’s experiment suggests that memory is not always accurate. Memory is reconstructed from the different elements (the pictures and the words)  Also, this experiment suggests that language (the verbal labels) can alter our recall.

7. Marshall (1969)  Air Force personnel, observed a car travelling at 12 mph.  Their estimates ranged from 10 to 50 mph.  Range in answers possibly due to leading questions.  These results also show us that humans are poor at estimating speed.

8. Filmore (1971)  Suggested that the words smashed and hit may imply different rates of speed.  These words lead the listener to assume different consequences to the impacts to which they are referring, with hit being perceived as gentler than smashed.

9. Aims  Loftus and Palmer’s experiment was actually two experiments.  They wanted to investigate in general how accurate or inaccurate memory was. Specifically they wanted to see the effect of ______________ upon estimates of ______. leading questions speed

10. Aims  Experiment 1 See if the speed estimates would be influenced by the wording of the question asked. Hit vs Smashed

11. Aims  Experiment 2 To see if the leading questions just changed the responses given to the questions, or whether the participant’s memories had actually altered as a result of the leading questions.

12. Procedures  Loftus and Palmer carried out two experiments. You need to know detailed procedures for both of them, as well as participant numbers.  Use the information on pg 107 and the original text  Two groups Complete table. When outlining the procedure, be as detailed but as clear as you can.

13. Procedures  Two groups Complete table. When outlining the procedure, be as detailed but as clear as you can.  Go back to your pairs, and share procedures  In pairs, answer questions 1-4

14. Findings and conclusions  Draw two graphs  Summarise the results  Write in the conclusions  Answer the questions Work together

15. Evaluating the methodology  In pairs Method Reliability and sampling Validity Ethics  Speed learn

16. Critically assess with reference to alternative evidence  Match up the study with the description of what the results mean  Use three colours to highlight research that supports, contradicts, or develops Loftus and Palmer’s research.