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The Cognitive Interview: Effects on the realism in witnesses’ confidence in their free recall

Allwood, Carl Martin LU ; Ask, Karl and Granhag, Pär Anders (2005) In Psychology, Crime and Law 11(2). p.183-198
Abstract
This study compared the realism of witnesses’ confidence judgments of their own recall elicited in either the Cognitive Interview (CI) or the Structured Interview (SI). Calibration methodology was used to analyze the realism of the confidence judg­ments. Participants (N = 56) were interviewed about their observations of a staged crime and returned two weeks later to assess their confidence in the statements. The CI, as in previous research, rendered a signifi­cantly higher number of correct recalled units compared with the SI. In both interview conditions the witnesses displayed a high level of accuracy and confidence. In addition, a very good level of calibration and very low overconfidence was found in the witnesses’ confidence... (More)
This study compared the realism of witnesses’ confidence judgments of their own recall elicited in either the Cognitive Interview (CI) or the Structured Interview (SI). Calibration methodology was used to analyze the realism of the confidence judg­ments. Participants (N = 56) were interviewed about their observations of a staged crime and returned two weeks later to assess their confidence in the statements. The CI, as in previous research, rendered a signifi­cantly higher number of correct recalled units compared with the SI. In both interview conditions the witnesses displayed a high level of accuracy and confidence. In addition, a very good level of calibration and very low overconfidence was found in the witnesses’ confidence judgments. No difference was found between the CI and SI in terms of the realism of the witnesses’ confidence judgments, as measured by level of calibration or under/over­confi­dence. Furthermore, the CI and the SI did not differ with respect to the witnesses’ estimations of the total number of correctly recalled items. It is suggested that the good realism found in these measures is due to the fact that witnesses assessed their confidence in items they had chosen to report of their own accord. (Less)
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author
; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
calibration, cognitive interview, realism in confidence, confidence–accuracy relation, structured interview
in
Psychology, Crime and Law
volume
11
issue
2
pages
183 - 198
publisher
Taylor & Francis
external identifiers
  • wos:000229708900005
  • scopus:20444440418
ISSN
1477-2744
DOI
10.1080/10683160512331329943
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
95024284-7a26-40ea-a294-bacb44bd5e1b (old id 757621)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 11:45:28
date last changed
2022-04-20 21:19:45
@article{95024284-7a26-40ea-a294-bacb44bd5e1b,
  abstract     = {{This study compared the realism of witnesses’ confidence judgments of their own recall elicited in either the Cognitive Interview (CI) or the Structured Interview (SI). Calibration methodology was used to analyze the realism of the confidence judg­ments. Participants (N = 56) were interviewed about their observations of a staged crime and returned two weeks later to assess their confidence in the statements. The CI, as in previous research, rendered a signifi­cantly higher number of correct recalled units compared with the SI. In both interview conditions the witnesses displayed a high level of accuracy and confidence. In addition, a very good level of calibration and very low overconfidence was found in the witnesses’ confidence judgments. No difference was found between the CI and SI in terms of the realism of the witnesses’ confidence judgments, as measured by level of calibration or under/over­confi­dence. Furthermore, the CI and the SI did not differ with respect to the witnesses’ estimations of the total number of correctly recalled items. It is suggested that the good realism found in these measures is due to the fact that witnesses assessed their confidence in items they had chosen to report of their own accord.}},
  author       = {{Allwood, Carl Martin and Ask, Karl and Granhag, Pär Anders}},
  issn         = {{1477-2744}},
  keywords     = {{calibration; cognitive interview; realism in confidence; confidence–accuracy relation; structured interview}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{2}},
  pages        = {{183--198}},
  publisher    = {{Taylor & Francis}},
  series       = {{Psychology, Crime and Law}},
  title        = {{The Cognitive Interview: Effects on the realism in witnesses’ confidence in their free recall}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10683160512331329943}},
  doi          = {{10.1080/10683160512331329943}},
  volume       = {{11}},
  year         = {{2005}},
}