Face Recognition Ability and Eyewitness Identification

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Psychology and Special Education

Date of Award

8-14-2024

Abstract

Eyewitness identification (ID) is a crucial factor in our justice system. There has been a copious amount of research done to improve the ID process. The Innocence Project (2023) lists hundreds of exonerated individuals who were wrongfully convicted due largely to misidentification. I used the Cambridge Face Memory Test (CFMT) for this thesis to determine if general facial recognition ability could be a predictor of eyewitness ID accuracy. I also manipulated encoding time to determine whether or not it interacts with this relationship. There is very little research applying tests of face recognition ability to eyewitness ID performance. Further, I investigated eyewitness ID performance from three different ID procedures: showups, biased lineups, and fair lineups. The overall goal of this study was to determine if the CFMT could be used as a predictive tool for eyewitness ID performance. If so, the CFMT is a simple test law enforcement can use to determine if a potential eyewitness would be reliable or not. If someone is generally a weak facial recognizer, they would most likely be a weak eyewitness. Eliminating weak eyewitnesses can be crucial in reducing the number of wrongful convictions that happen every year.

Advisor

Curt Carlson

Subject Categories

Psychology | Social and Behavioral Sciences

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