Evaluating autobiographical skills and their relationship with suggestibility in children: development and validation of the Children Recalling Autobiographical Memory

Introduction

Autobiographical narrative skills and resistance to suggestibility factors are central aspects in children's testimony. While the assessment of suggestibility relies on standardized questionnaire, no such an instrument exists to reliably assess autobiographical skills in children. This aspect is further important when considering that the development of such skills seems to be related to the suggestibility, that is, suggestibility would be reduced in presence of higher autobiographical skills. However, no direct test of this relationship is available in literature, also due to the lack of quantitative instruments for assessing autobiographical skills.

Methods

To fulfill both these methodological and theoretical issues, in this study a new tool was validated to measure the main autobiographical narrative skills (Where, What, When, Who, and How) in relation to both Retrospective Memory and Prospective Memory: the Children Recalling Autobiographical Memory (CRAM). We recruited a sample of 321 children aged 7-16 years.

Results and discussion

The result of the EFA analysis showed one-factor model, and revealed also good fit indexes and internal reliability. After validating this new tool, we further used it to test our main hypothesis, that is, children with higher autobiographical memory skills were less vulnerable to interrogative suggestibility as assessed by Gudjonsson Suggestibility Scale 2 (GSS2). A hierarchical linear regression model showed a reduction in suggestibility with age and level of autobiographical skills. Moreover, the level of such skills moderate the effect of age, such as only in presence of high or moderate level of autobiographical skills the age significantly reduces the level of suggestibility.

What is the Source of Hypnotic Responses?

The author proposes that hypnosis is a culture-bound concept that has misattributed - to suggestion and hypnosis - the functioning of a natural, freestanding, human ability to alter personal experience. The 18th-century attribution of these phenomena (to the suggestions of a magnetizer) continues today because science and Western culture still do not explicitly acknowledge that humans possess a natural capacity to intentionally alter their own experiences. Like every other human ability (e.g. athletic, artistic, musical, mathematical, etc.), utilization of the natural human ability to intentionally alter one's personal experience does not require suggestion, trance, or hypnotic induction. This ability has been studied for over 200 years under the conceptual aegis of suggestibility and hypnosis. As a consequence, the phenomena of this freestanding ability have been veiled and conflated with hypnosis, suggestion, suggestibility, and hypnotizability. One serious consequence of this conflation is an underdeveloped, nomological network of hypnosis-centric concepts that has impeded the integration of hypnosis with the rest of science.

Witnesses' susceptibility to misleading post-event information delivered in a social media-style video

In many criminal cases, outcomes rely on eyewitness evidence. Exposure to misleading information after an event reduces the accuracy of witnesses' memories. In some circumstances, warnings about misinformation can protect witnesses. As social media is a growing source of misleading information, this study examined the effect of misleading post-event information delivered via a social media-style video, as well as the utility of a minimal versus detailed warning. Participants (N = 145) watched a video showing an electrician stealing items from a client's home. Next, they received one of three pre-warnings regarding forthcoming misleading information: a minimal warning indicating that caution should be taken, a detailed warning specifying the presence of misleading information, or no warning. Participants received the misleading information via a social media video or a standard text-based narrative. Finally, they completed a recognition test. Although delivery method did not affect errors for misleading items, detailed warnings were only effective against text-based misleading information. Participants were more confident about their correct than incorrect responses for misleading items; confidence was not affected by delivery method or warning. This experiment is the first to demonstrate people's susceptibility to misleading post-event information delivered in a social media-style video using an eyewitness paradigm.

Hypnosis measured with monitors of anesthetic depth - EEG changes during the test for Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility

Introduction

Hypnotic trance can be defined as a non-ordinary state of consciousness that is accompanied by a number of neurophysiological changes, including brain electrophysiology. In addition to subjective measures, corresponding objective parameters are needed in experimental and clinical hypnosis research but are complex, impractical, or unspecific. A similar challenge exists for the measurement and monitoring of drug-induced hypnosis, namely general anesthesia. The observation of changes in EEG induced by narcotics has led to the development of monitors for the depth of anesthesia based on EEG parameters. We investigated whether two such monitors react to the induction and maintenance of hypnosis during a highly standardized procedure.

Methods

A total of 56 volunteers were monitored for the bispectral index (BIS) and cerebral state index (CSI) (range 0-100, >95 considered "awake") during the Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility test. For this test, trance is induced by a taped text and followed by 12 tasks performed under hypnosis. In contrast to random forms of hypnosis, this represents a standardized, worldwide-established condition. According to the resulting score, participants were classified into suggestibility groups in order to evaluate whether the electrophysiological measurements of BIS and CIS indices differ between high and low suggestible persons. Furthermore, participants were asked to rate their hypnotic depth (HD, 1-10) at every task of the test.

Results

Scores dropped significantly from a mean of 97.7 to 86.4 for BIS and from 94.6 to 77.7 for CSI with the induction of hypnosis to stay throughout hypnosis at levels of approximately 88.6 or 82.9, respectively. Results did not differ between high- and low-suggestible participants. The means of the subjective score of hypnotic depth and of the electrophysiological measurements showed a similar course. However, no correlation was found between BIS or CSI values and scores of hypnotic depths.

Conclusion

Monitors for depth of anesthesia respond to changes in consciousness, including trance states of hypnosis. However, specificity is unclear. Practically, in hypnosis research with the exclusion of drug effects or sleep, these monitors might be helpful to test and compare the efficacy of induction texts and to detect disturbances of trance state.

Memory accuracy, suggestibility and credibility in investigative interviews with native and non-native eyewitnesses

Legal practitioners sometimes obtain eyewitness testimonies from non-native language speakers, yet few studies examine the effects of language in investigative interviews. Here, we investigate how testifying in a non-native vs. native language affects memory accuracy, susceptibility to suggestions, and witnesses perceived credibility. After viewing a mock-crime film, participants in Study 1 (N = 121) testified through (1) free recall, (2) cued recall and (3) the Gudjonsson Suggestibility Scales adapted to the crime scenario used in the present study either in their native (Swedish) or a non-native (English) language. They also rated their confidence in their memories, self-perceived credibility and cognitive effort. Native and non-native witnesses did not differ in memory accuracy, susceptibility to suggestions, self-rated credibility or cognitive effort. Non-native (vs. native) speakers did however report lower confidence in their memories. In Study 2, another group of participants (N = 202) were presented with the testimonies from Study 1, and judged witnesses’ credibility. Non-native witnesses were judged as less credible than native speakers. Thus, while the lower confidence exhibited by non-native eyewitnesses did not correspond to their actual memory accuracy, it influenced observers’ judgments of their performance. The results provide important knowledge for legal practices when evaluating the reliability of testimonies from non-native vs. native speaking eyewitnesses.

Normative developmental vs. reverse developmental trends in memory distortion: a framework to investigate the impact of internal and external influences on memory and their relevance to legal decisions

There are two opposing positions regarding the development of memory: the normative developmental position, and the reverse developmental position. The normative position, which has long been the default presupposition, supports the notion that susceptibility to memory distortion, including false memories, decreases with age. In contrast, the concept of "developmental reversals" supports the notion that susceptibility to memory distortion and false memories increases with age. Each perspective finds support from existing theories as well as from research on endogenous and exogenous sources of influence. In a legal context, having an accurate understanding of the developmental course of false memory can contribute on the one hand to mitigating wrongful convictions and, on the other hand, to appreciating the accuracy of children's statements when warranted. This review aims to integrate the existing literature regarding these seemingly opposite developmental courses and construct a framework outlining the conditions under which we may observe one age trend over the other. This entails an examination of the paradigms that have been invoked to support these competing positions, specifically developmental responses to internal vs. external sources of distortion.

LSD, madness and healing: Mystical experiences as possible link between psychosis model and therapy model

BACKGROUND

For a century, psychedelics have been investigated as models of psychosis for demonstrating phenomenological similarities with psychotic experiences and as therapeutic models for treating depression, anxiety, and substance use disorders. This study sought to explore this paradoxical relationship connecting key parameters of the psychotic experience, psychotherapy, and psychedelic experience.

METHODS

In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover design, 24 healthy volunteers received 50 μg d-lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) or inactive placebo. Psychotic experience was assessed by aberrant salience (Aberrant Salience Inventory, ASI), therapeutic potential by suggestibility (Creative Imagination Scale, CIS) and mindfulness (Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire, FFMQ; Mindful Attention Awareness Scale, MAAS; Experiences Questionnaire, EQ), and psychedelic experience by four questionnaires (Altered State of Consciousness Questionnaire, ASC; Mystical Experiences Questionnaire, MEQ; Challenging Experiences Questionnaire, CEQ; Ego-Dissolution Inventory, EDI). Relationships between LSD-induced effects were examined.

RESULTS

LSD induced psychedelic experiences, including alteration of consciousness, mystical experiences, ego-dissolution, and mildly challenging experiences, increased aberrant salience and suggestibility, but not mindfulness. LSD-induced aberrant salience correlated highly with complex imagery, mystical experiences, and ego-dissolution. LSD-induced suggestibility correlated with no other effects. Individual mindfulness changes correlated with aspects of aberrant salience and psychedelic experience.

CONCLUSIONS

The LSD state resembles a psychotic experience and offers a tool for healing. The link between psychosis model and therapeutic model seems to lie in mystical experiences. The results point to the importance of meaning attribution for the LSD psychosis model and indicate that psychedelic-assisted therapy might benefit from therapeutic suggestions fostering mystical experiences.

Associations between the misinformation effect, trauma exposure and symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder and depression

This research aimed to conduct an initial investigation into the relationships between the "misinformation effect" and trauma exposure, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression. Study 1 was a pilot study developing an online misinformation paradigm that could assess the influence of emotion and arousal on memory distortions. Participants (n = 162, M_age = 39.90; SD = 10.90) were recruited through TurkPrime. In Study 2 community members (n = 116, M_age = 28.96; SD = 10.33) completed this misinformation paradigm and measures of trauma exposure, PTSD, and depression. Study 1 found memory for central details was better for high-arousal than low-arousal and neutral-arousal images. Peripheral memory appeared worse for negative and neutral images than positive images. Study 2 found that, when controlling for age and gender, PTSD symptoms significantly predicted proportion of correct responses on control items. However, there was no evidence to indicate that trauma exposure, PTSD symptoms nor depression symptoms, were associated with proportion of correct responses on misled items. Valence and arousal did not influence these associations. These findings have important implications in clinical and legal contexts where individuals with a history of trauma, or who are experiencing symptoms of PTSD or depression, are often required to recall emotionally-laden events. There is a surprising dearth of research into the misinformation effect in clinical populations and further research is required.

Pedunculopontine-induced cortical decoupling as the neurophysiological locus of dissociation

Mounting evidence suggests an association between aberrant sleep phenomena and dissociative experiences. However, no wake-sleep boundary theory provides a compelling explanation of dissociation or specifies its physiological substrates. We present a theoretical account of dissociation that integrates theories and empirical results from multiple lines of research concerning the domain of dissociation and the regulation of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. This theory posits that individual differences in the circuitry governing the REM sleep promoting Pedunculopontine Nucleus and Laterodorsal Tegmental Nucleus determine the degree of similarity in the cortical connectivity profiles of wakefulness and REM sleep. We propose that a latent trait characterized by elevated dissociative experiences emerges from the decoupling of frontal executive regions due to a REM sleep-like aminergic/cholinergic balance. The Pedunculopontine-Induced Cortical Decoupling Account of Dissociation (PICDAD) suggests multiple fruitful lines of inquiry and provides novel insights. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

A systematic review of the relationship between emotion and susceptibility to misinformation

Inaccurate memory reports can have serious consequences within forensic and clinical settings, where emotion and misinformation are two common sources of memory distortion. Many studies have investigated how these factors are related; does emotion protect memory or leave it more vulnerable to the distorting effects of misinformation? The findings remain diffused. Thus, the present review aimed to clarify the relationship between emotion and susceptibility to misinformation. 39 eligible studies were reviewed. Results varied according to the type and dimension of emotion measured. Level of arousal may be unrelated to susceptibility to misinformation when retrieval occurs without delay; studies including delayed retrieval were limited. Stimuli valence may be associated with increased susceptibility to peripheral misinformation but unrelated to other misinformation. The following results were reported by limited studies: short-term distress and moderate levels of stress may decrease susceptibility, while anger and greater cortisol response to stress may increase susceptibility to misinformation. Source memory may also be unaffected by emotion. The results have important potential implications for forensic and clinical practice, for example by highlighting the value of enquiring witnesses' source memory. Methodological recommendations for future studies are made.

How Chronological Age, Theory of Mind, and Yield are Interrelated to Memory and Suggestion in Young Children

We investigated the interrelations between chronological age, theory of mind (ToM), Yield (as a measure of individual suggestibility), memory and acceptance of experimental suggestion in a sample of children between 3 and 7 years old (N = 106). One week after participants interacted with 'a Teacher', they were asked to recall activities carried out with the Teacher (direct experience) and the contents of a story read to them by the Teacher (indirect experience). Data were examined with an analysis of developmental trajectories, which allows establishing the predictor value of socio-cognitive developmental factors regardless of participants' chronological age. It also estimates predictor values in interaction with the age and determines whether age is the best predictor for performance. As in previous research, results showed that chronological age was the main predictor of memory performance, both for direct experience (i.e., activities performed) and indirect experience (i.e., contents of the story). However, ToM and Yield, together with participants' ages, modulated their acceptance of the external suggestions received (presented only once, one week after the event). A turning point was observed at age 4.6. Below this age, the greater the mentalist skills (higher ToM), the lower was the vulnerability to external suggestion. Still, children below this age characterized individually as being suggestible (Yield medium or high) were more vulnerable to suggestion the younger they were. Thus, developmental socio-cognitive factors might modulate young children's vulnerability to external suggestions, even if received only once.

Culture, context, and ethics in the therapeutic use of hallucinogens: Psychedelics as active super-placebos?

Following decades of prohibition and widespread concern about their mind-altering properties, there is increasing public, scholarly, and clinical interest in the therapeutic potential of psychedelic substances. Serotonergic substances in particular (DMT, psilocybin, and LSD) are now being tested as treatments for such ailments as depression, anxiety, and substance use disorder. This thematic issue of Transcultural Psychiatry presents articles that investigate the cultural assumptions, political dimensions, and clinical and ethical implications that arise from this renewed interest. After reviewing ongoing debates on therapeutic mechanisms of action and the importance of context, we argue that psychedelics can be conceptualized as "active super-placebos"-that is, substances that enhance ritual, symbolic, and interpersonal therapeutic processes by increasing suggestibility and the influence of extra-pharmacological, "non-specific" factors. Rather than simply freeing up habitual constraints on perception, the articles in this issue support the claim that psychedelic encounters typically entail processes of sense-making, crystallization of meaning, and enculturation into contextually mediated assumptive worlds (or ideologies) and behaviours that necessarily install novel constraints with potentially maladaptive consequences. We highlight the importance of clinical and epistemic integrity in the framing of psychedelic therapies. The importance of structuring and providing oversight for the therapeutic context raises difficult questions about the search for appropriate forms of epistemic authority that are at once respectful of the plural cultural origins of psychedelic rituals and mindful of best practices and standards in clinical care.

Hypnosis and Hypnotic ability between old beliefs and new evidences: An epistemological reflection

The history of hypnosis has been marked by its effectiveness paralleled by prejudicial refusal, due to its ostensible incompatibility with the ruling Weltbild (picture of the world). Its interpretation has been mainly based on concepts like suggestibility, dissociation, hallucination, impairment of sense of agency, and free will. Nevertheless, little evidence and agreement has been reached so far on the nature of hypnosis and hypnotic ability, an uncertainty enhanced by the wide range of meanings and ambiguities of the used terms. This article analyzes the main epistemological implications involved in the topic.

Suggested false memories of a non-existent film: forensically relevant individual differences in the crashing memories paradigm

There is ample evidence to suggest that posing leading questions is dangerous, in that it may elicit compliant responses that are not necessarily accurate. Further, suggestive questioning is considered to possibly result in the development of false memories, implied in the suggestion. [Crombag, H. F. M., Wagenaar, W. A., & van Koppen, P. J. (1996). Crashing memories and the problem of 'source monitoring'. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 10(2), 95-104. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199604)10:2<95::AID-ACP366>3.0.CO;2-#] introduced a crashing memories paradigm in which participants are asked a single leading question about a non-existent film. The present research sought to replicate the false-memory-eliciting effect of the crashing memory induction. Further, we sought to explore associations with forensically relevant personality traits, particularly acquiescence, compliance, and suggestibility. In two studies, a significant minority of participants endorsed the leading question about the non-existent film (25.7%, and 38% respectively). We found no support for an association with acquiescence or compliance, but suggestibility was associated with the development of false memories.

Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder and confabulation in psycholegal settings: A beginner's guide for criminal justice, forensic mental health, and legal interviewers

Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) are neurodevelopmental/neurobehavioral conditions caused by prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE). Impairments caused by PAE contribute to the over-representation of individuals with FASD in the United States juvenile and adult criminal justice systems. These same impairments can equally impact on individuals with FASD who are witnesses to or victims of crime who also have to navigate the complexities of the criminal justice system. Difficulties include increased susceptibility to confabulation throughout the legal process that, in turn, can contribute to increased rates of poor outcomes including false confessions and wrongful convictions. Individuals with FASD are particularity at risk of confabulation when they are subjected to tactics, such as stressful and anxiety-provoking situations, threats, and leading, suggestive, or coercive questioning. Many professionals in the forensic context are unfamiliar with FASD or related confabulation risk and may unintentionally utilize tactics that intensify impacts of pre-existing impairment. This article serves as a beginner's guide for professionals working in criminal justice settings by (a) providing research-based overviews of FASD and confabulation, (b) describing how FASD may lead to confabulation, and (c) suggesting ways that professionals can modify protocols when interacting with individuals with FASD. Suggestions in this article hold the potential to decrease the risk of confabulation in the criminal justice system and decrease problematic outcomes, such as false confessions and wrongful convictions among individuals with FASD.

Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) and suggestibility: A survey of United States federal case law

This article summarizes four federal criminal cases that illustrate how suggestibility can impact defendants with FASD in the criminal justice system. Four cases were identified via a Google Scholar search of "suggestibility" and "fetal alcohol" in the federal case law database. These cases are illustrative of how FASD can affect legal defendants, including vulnerability to peer pressure, being easily manipulated, insufficient comprehension of legal proceedings, difficulty in assisting legal counsel, learning impairment, acquiescence or higher levels of suggestibility, and difficulty understanding consequences. The cases presented here provided the most comprehensive discussion of FASD and suggestibility issues but are by no means an exhaustive review of case law. Because defendants with FASD are the focal point of this article, we intentionally excluded cases involving eyewitness suggestibility, the suggestibility of child witnesses, and the suggestibility of those under hypnosis. Therefore, this review has been developed to explicate and illustrate problems common to FASD defendants within legal settings, especially regarding risk for suggestibility. The information provided from this discussion may better guide legal professionals who regularly come into contact with persons affected by FASD on how to more readily detect this neurodevelopmental condition and mitigate the likelihood of injustice during criminal proceedings. Additionally, we include suggestions on how to attenuate miscarriages of justice as a result of faulty confessions, wrongful convictions, and vulnerability of suggestibility in persons affected by FASD.

The seven sins of memory: an update

Memory serves critical functions in everyday life, but it is also vulnerable to error and illusion. Two decades ago, I proposed that memory errors could be classified into seven basic categories or "sins": transience, absent-mindedness, blocking, misattribution, suggestibility, bias, and persistence. I argued that each of the seven sins provides important insights concerning the fundamentally constructive nature of human memory, while at the same time reflecting its adaptive features. In this article I briefly summarise some key developments during the past two decades that have increased our understanding of the nature, consequences, and adaptive functions of the memory sins.

Right-Wing Psychedelia: Case Studies in Cultural Plasticity and Political Pluripotency

Recent media advocacy for the nascent psychedelic medicine industry has emphasized the potential for psychedelics to improve society, pointing to research studies that have linked psychedelics to increased environmental concern and liberal politics. However, research supporting the hypothesis that psychedelics induce a shift in political beliefs must address the many historical and contemporary cases of psychedelic users who remained authoritarian in their views after taking psychedelics or became radicalized after extensive experience with them. We propose that the common anecdotal accounts of psychedelics precipitating radical shifts in political or religious beliefs result from the contextual factors of set and setting, and have no particular directional basis on the axes of conservatism-liberalism or authoritarianism-egalitarianism. Instead, we argue that any experience which challenges a person's fundamental worldview-including a psychedelic experience-can precipitate shifts in any direction of political belief. We suggest that the historical record supports the concept of psychedelics as "politically pluripotent," non-specific amplifiers of the political set and setting. Contrary to recent assertions, we show that conservative, hierarchy-based ideologies are able to assimilate psychedelic experiences of interconnection, as expressed by thought leaders like Jordan Peterson, corporadelic actors, and members of several neo-Nazi organizations.

A para-religious setting for financial exploitation of the mentally incapacitated: when the habit doesn't make a monk

Exploitation and circumvention of the mentally incapacitated is a criminal offence listed in the Italian penal code (Penal Code Art. 643). It involves the exploitation and circumvention of people who are fragile and vulnerable owing to their health conditions and/or mental status, and fits into the grey area between such subjects' freedom to make decisions about their physical conditions and economic assets, and the abuse of their trust perpetrated by third parties for personal gain. The authors describe a case of financial exploitation and circumven-tion of a married couple that is remarkable in view of both the huge sums extorted from the victims and the duration of the peculiar illicit activities (that lasted more than 10 years). These were perpetrated by a charismatic figure leading a "para-religious" group. He claimed to be a prophet, but his private life was highly questionable. The method of ascertainment used to verify the victims' mentally incapacitated state is described, analyzed and commented; the diagnosis could not be deferred in view of the characteristics of the prolonged penal offences committed.

Post-traumatic stress disorder, suggestibility, and dissociation related to alleged alien abductions

OBJECTIVES

Thousands of people throughout the world are convinced that they have been abducted by aliens. We aimed to assess the emotional reaction to such an implausible event and propose some explanations alternative to severe psychopathology.

METHODS

A total of 19 individuals who reported memories of having been abducted by aliens were compared to a control group of 32 participants. We employed a battery of tests measuring post-traumatic stress disorder, suggestibility, and dissociation within all participants.

RESULTS

The abductee group showed higher scores in measures of post-traumatic stress disorders and dissociation, but lower in suggestibility. Nevertheless, these differences were statistically significant only in suggestibility.

CONCLUSIONS

The emotional reaction to memories of an implausible experience can be similar to an individual's response to a genuinely traumatic event. Dissociation might be involved in the clarification of some cases. Explanations alternative to psychosis for these testimonies are proposed.

Psychometric Properties of a German Online Version of the Gudjonsson Suggestibility Scale 1

Suggestibility is a trait dimension that has been differentiated into Yield and Shift dimensions. Yield refers to the susceptibility to suggestive item content in a first question series (Yield 1) and a second question series following negative feedback (Yield 2). Shift describes the tendency to change answers over the two series of questions depending on social pressure. This study aimed at investigating the psychometric properties and the factor structure of a German online version of the Gudjonsson Suggestibility Scale 1 (GSS 1) and measurement invariance of suggestibility scores for gender and research institution. A total of N=560 (n=287 female; age: M=24.20, SD=4.60years) students participated in the study. We present Stanine norms for the application of the online GSS 1. Results supported the theoretical basis of the GSS by revealing the two expected suggestibility factors: Yield and Shift. As expected, a leading factor and a non-leading factor were identified for Yield 1 and Yield 2 and a single factor for Shift. We report psychometric properties (e.g., item difficulty, part-whole corrected item-total correlations, reliability coefficients). We compare the factorial structure of the German online GSS 1 with former versions of the GSS 1. Our data suggest widely measurement invariance for gender and research institution on Yield 1 and Yield 2.

Controlling for Confirmation Bias in Child Sexual Abuse Interviews

Confirmation bias is one of the most important sources of error in clinical assessment and clinical judgment. There has been little scholarship on the role of confirmation bias in forensic interviews with children who may have been abused sexually. This article reviews relevant research and explores the possible role of confirmation bias in forensic interviews. Confirmation bias may come into play because these interviews usually are conducted under the auspices of one side of the adversarial judicial system, the prosecution. In addition, the existing forensic interview protocols have paid little explicit attention to confirmation bias, instead focusing on decreasing the likelihood of suggestibility within the interview (although rarely are there efforts to detect suggestibility before the forensic interview). Finally, this article offers eight practical suggestions regarding how to further mitigate confirmation bias in these important forensic interviews, including increased training in how confirmation bias can affect forensic interviews, increased psychometric investigation of current interview protocols (particularly their sensitivity and specificity), and expanding forensic interview protocols and training to address confirmation bias explicitly.

Resisting misinformation via discrepancy detection: effects of an unaware suspicion cue

Previous studies have shown that contaminating effects of misinformation can be reduced by consciously raising the awareness of eyewitnesses to the discrepancy between the misinformation and the original information (e.g., Tousignant, J. P., Hall, D., & Loftus, E. F. [1986]. Discrepancy detection and vulnerability misleading postevent information. Memory & Cognition, 14(4), 329-338. doi:10.3758/BF03202511). We tested whether similar effects could be obtained without conscious awareness, by drawing on the metaphor "something smells fishy" linking fishy smells and suspicion (Lee, S. W. S., & Schwarz, N. [2012]. Bidirectionality, mediation, and moderation of metaphorical effects: The embodiment of social suspicion and fishy smells. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 103(5), 737-749. doi:10.1037/a0029708). In a pilot study, we established the replicability and generality of previous findings concerning this metaphorical link. We then examined the effects of the smell-suspicion link on susceptibility to misleading post-event information using the misinformation paradigm. Here, the "something smells fishy" metaphor was used to invoke suspicion and increase discrepancy detection. Forty-eight hours after viewing an event, participants received misinformation in a room sprayed with either a fishy or a neutral smell. As expected, unaware exposure to the fishy smell (compared to the neutral smell) increased discrepancy detection (measured indirectly) and resistance to the contaminating effects of misinformation, eliminating misinformation interference and lowering suggestibility on the final test.

Current neuroscientific research database findings of brain activity changes after hypnosis

Using multi-modal brain imaging techniques we found pronounced changes in neuronal activity after hypnotic trance induction whereby state changes seem to occur synchronously with the specific induction instructions. In clinical patients, hypnosis proved to be a powerful method in inhibiting the reaction of the fear circuitry structures. The aim of the present paper is to critically discuss the limitations of the current neuroscientific research database in the light of a debate in defining relevant hypnotic constructs and to suggest ideas for future research projects. We discuss the role of hypnotic suggestibility (HS), the impact of hypnotic inductions and the importance of the depth of hypnotic trance. We argue that future research on brain imaging studies on the effects of hypnosis and hypnotherapy should focus on the analysis of individual cross-network activation patterns. A most promising approach is to simultaneously include physiological parameters linked to cognitive, somatic, and behavioral effects.

No increased suggestibility to placebo in functional neurological disorder

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

On the basis of occasional strong placebo responses, increased susceptibility to placebo has been proposed as a characteristic of functional neurological disorder (FND). The aim of this study was to clarify whether people with FND have a stronger placebo analgesic response than healthy controls.

METHODS

A study using a classic placebo paradigm, with additional conditioning and open-label components, was performed in 30 patients with FND, and in 30 healthy controls. Ratings of mildly to moderately painful electrotactile stimuli were compared before and after the application of a placebo "anaesthetic" cream versus a control cream, after an additional conditioning exposure, and after full disclosure (open-label component).

RESULTS

Pain intensity ratings at the placebo compared to the control site were similarly reduced in both groups. The conditioning exposure had no additional effect. After placebo disclosure a residual analgesic effect remained.

CONCLUSION

Patients with FND did not have stronger placebo responses than healthy controls. The notion of generally increased suggestibility or increased suggestibility to placebo in FND seems mistaken. Instead, occasional dramatic placebo responses may occur because functional symptoms are inherently more changeable than those due to organic disease.

Can suggestions of non-occurrence lead to claims that witnessed events did not happen?

In three experiments, we examined whether general suggestions of non-occurrence -suggestions that experienced events did not occur- would lead participants to claim that events they witnessed never happened. Participants viewed a video depicting the investigation of a child kidnapping case and subsequently were exposed to suggestions of non-occurrence either once (Experiments 1 and 3) or three times (Experiments 2 and 3). The results provided no evidence that single suggestions of non-occurrence influenced participants' memories or belief (Experiments 1 and 3). However, in two experiments (E2 and E3) the results provided clear evidence that repeated elaboration of suggestions of non-occurrence led participants to claim that the events they witnessed never happened. The finding that participants were influenced by repeated, but not single elaboration of suggestions of non-occurrence shows that reflective elaboration processes played an important role in leading participants to disbelieve the events they had witnessed.

Individual Differences in Children's Suggestibility: An Updated Review

The present review is intended as an overview of our current understanding of how children's individual characteristics, in terms of demographic, cognitive, and psycho-social variables, may influence their susceptibility to suggestion. The goals are to revisit conceptual models of the mechanisms of suggestibility, to provide an updated practical guide for practitioners, and to make recommendations for future research. Results suggest that children with intellectual impairment and those with nascent language skills may be particularly vulnerable to suggestion. Further, memory for separate events, theory of mind, executive function, temperament, and social competence may not be related to suggestibility, whereas additional work is needed to clarify the potential contributions of knowledge, stress, mental health, parental elaborative style, and adverse experiences/maltreatment to children's suggestibility.

Suggestibility and false memories in relation to intellectual disability and autism spectrum disorder: a meta-analytic review

BACKGROUND

A systematic literature review was conducted to evaluate previous research that examined intellectual disability (ID) or autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in relation to memory distortions (i.e. suggestibility and false memories). There were two goals for the current study; the first goal was to identify significant trends in past literature that fulfilled previously established selection criteria. The second goal was to establish reliability and effect sizes for suggestibility and false memory for samples with diagnoses of ID or ASD.

METHODS AND PROCEDURES

Articles that were selected for inclusion in the current study were required to have a clinically diagnosed sample, as well as a non-clinical control group. Studies were also required to have a post-hoc power score higher than .30 to prevent the effects of underpowered studies and limit the potential for publication bias. Selected studies were also required to have provided pertinent information required to complete the analyses (e.g. means, standard deviations, p-values, or correlation coefficients). Any study that did not provide the required information was excluded.

RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS

Two empirical Bayes omnibus analyses revealed a significant effect for participants diagnosed with ID (z = 6.10, p < .001), which supported the researchers' hypothesis. The results indicated increased susceptibility toward memory suggestibility and false memories when compared with the general population. However, the results of the analyses did not support the researchers' hypothesis regarding participants diagnosed with ASD. The analyses indicated that participants diagnosed with ASD displayed decreased suggestibility and were less likely to develop false memories (z = -2.37, p = 0.018).

Suggestibility is associated with alcohol self-administration, subjective alcohol effects, and self-reported drinking behavior

BACKGROUND

Suggestibility, defined as an individual's inclination to accept and internalize messages, has not been studied in relation to alcohol use. Peer conformity, a component of suggestibility, may be related to alcohol use, as peer groups show similarities in patterns of alcohol use. Few studies have assessed how suggestibility and peer conformity relate to alcohol self-administration or to reinforcing effects of alcohol.

AIMS

This study assessed whether suggestibility and peer conformity were associated with drinking behavior, alcohol self-administration, subjective response to alcohol, and drinking motives and expectancies.

METHODS

Study 1 participants were alcohol drinkers (n=20), who completed a laboratory study of free-access intravenous alcohol self-administration. Study 2 participants were adolescents and young adults, age 14-25 (n=150), with lifetime alcohol use. Participants completed surveys of suggestibility and drinking patterns (Study 1 and 2), subjective alcohol effects (Study 1 only), and alcohol motives and expectancies (Study 2 only).

RESULTS/OUTCOMES

In Study 1, participants with higher levels of suggestiblity self-administered more alcohol, and reported greater subjective alcohol effects. Peer conformity, though correlated with suggestibility, was not related to these measures. In Study 2, participants with higher suggestiblity reported more alcohol consumption, higher drinking motives and alcohol expectancies. Peer conformity was not related to alcohol consumption, but was related to coping and enhancement drinking motives, and all expectancies measures.

CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION

Results indicate that suggestibility, beyond peer conformity, may be a critical factor to study when examining alcohol consumption behavior, and may provide insight into the development of alcohol use disorder.

Effects of Interviewer Support on Children's Memory and Suggestibility: Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses of Experimental Research

The accuracy of children's reports of abuse has been hotly debated in the press, academia, and the courtroom. Yet, children's accuracy depends, in part, on the context in which children are interviewed. Guidelines often recommend creating a supportive psychosocial context to promote open, honest responding; however, there is also concern that support promotes social desirability and acquiescence to suggestion, leading children to report more of what they perceive adults want to hear than the truth. The question remains as to whether there is a sufficient body of scientific research to determine whether interviewer supportiveness improves interview outcomes while minimizing children's stress or whether it increases suggestibility and impairs accuracy. Using a systematic search strategy and meta-analyses, this study identifies and reviews findings from experimental studies of the effects of interviewer supportiveness on the accuracy of children's reports. Although the number of studies in the evidence base is small ( n = 15), the studies are of relatively good quality. Results suggest noncontingent interviewer support bolsters children's accuracy. Children are more resistant and less acquiescent to suggestive questions when interviewers are supportive as compared to nonsupportive or neutral. Effects are in the moderate range. Interviewer support is also associated with fewer errors on nonsuggestive questions. Discussion focuses on implications for practice; directions for future research; identifying vulnerable subgroups; and underlying cognitive, social, and emotional mechanisms.

Who Is the Better Eyewitness? Sometimes Adults but at Other Times Children

Suggestibility is regarded as a major issue when children testify in court. Many legal professionals and memory researchers view children as inferior witnesses. Although differences in suggestibility exist between children and adults, they are much more complex than is usually assumed. We show that under certain conditions, adults are more susceptible than children to suggestion and false memories. We provide evidence that age-related shifts in suggestibility and false memory appear contingent on how quickly and automatically children and adults make associations when experiencing events. Specifically, when confronted with suggestive information about a related but nonexperienced detail, adults more frequently automatically generate links between items experienced and those already in memory, making them more susceptible to suggestion than children.

Does anyone else look familiar? Influencing identification decisions by asking witnesses to re-examine the lineup

Two experiments were conducted to see if asking witnesses to take another look at the lineup after they voiced their identification decisions would alter their choices, and if confirming feedback could then be used to solidify the selections they shifted to. Participants watched a simulated crime and were asked to identify the culprit from a photographic lineup. After voicing their identification decisions, participants were prompted to re-examine the lineup. Half of the participants then received confirming feedback for their decisions, regardless of whether they shifted to a new picture or not. Later on, a different experimenter escorted participants to a second room and administered the same lineup again. In Experiment 1 (N = 432), biased instructions were used to encourage choosing, and when participants were prompted to re-examine the lineup, 70% changed their identification decisions and selected a different picture. When that new selection was reinforced with feedback and participants were given a second opportunity to identify the culprit at a later time, 72% selected the picture they shifted to as the culprit. Participants who made their decisions more quickly were less likely to shift, but accuracy did not predict shifting. This general pattern of findings was replicated using unbiased instructions in Experiment 2 (N = 237). Results suggest that prompting witnesses to re-examine the lineup can often lead witnesses to change their identification decisions, and when the altered choice is reinforced, they will often stay with that influenced decision over time, asserting it with a high degree of confidence. (PsycINFO Database Record

Psychometric Analysis of the Barber Suggestibility Scale in a Clinical Population

The aim of the study was to administer the Barber suggestibility scale to a clinical population in Spain and to examine its psychometric properties therein. The reliability and factor structure of the adapted scale was compared with that of the original (American) scale and with data from two other versions (British and Puerto Rican samples). Sex differences in suggestibility were also analyzed. The Barber suggestibility scale was administered (without preliminaries) to a sample of 283 patients (130 women, 153 men) with a range of diagnoses: anxiety disorder (33.9%), substance-related and addictive disorder (25.8%), mood disorder (12.7%), somatic symptom disorder (4.6%), trauma- and stress-related disorder (3.5%), and other disorders (19.5%). Results indicated a higher degree of suggestibility among women, with the effect size being low (d = 0.26) for the objective subscale and moderate (d = 0.55) for the subjective subscale. Therefore, normative scores were reported by sex for both subscales. As a whole, the present clinical sample showed higher suggestibility than has been reported previously for nonclinical populations (p < 0.001; d = 1.56). Reliability indices (Cronbach's alpha and split-half/Spearman-Brown) for the present adaptation in a clinical population indicated acceptable internal consistency (range 0.70-0.82). Applied to a clinical sample the Barber suggestibility scale showed a three-factor structure for the objective subscale and a more complex structure for the subjective subscale. These results suggest that the Barber suggestibility scale is a suitable instrument for assessing the degree of suggestibility in persons with a clinical disorder.

The future of professional hypnosis: comment on kirsch, mazzoni, and montgomery

I believe the paper by Kirsch, Mazzoni, and Montgomery (this issue) should surprise about 95% of ASCH members (maybe only 93% of SCEH members) because the three facts espoused in their paper speciously seem to be 100% true. To paraphrase from their abstract: 1) nothing that can be produced by hypnotic induction plus suggestion cannot also be produced by suggestion alone; 2) administration of a hypnotic induction does not produce a meaningful increase in response to suggestion relative to suggestion alone; and 3) responsivity to suggestions are highly correlated to responsivity on the same measure when preceded by a hypnotic induction ceremony. In order to persuade that these propositions are true, several objections to them must be addressed. However, just because one's facts are true does not mean that one's interpretation of the facts and their interrelationships are also true. The ramifications of the above facts and their interrelationships for the future of professional hypnosis (experimental, clinical and forensic) are identified and discussed.

Placebo and Nocebo Effects: The Advantage of Measuring Expectations and Psychological Factors

Several studies have explored the predictability of placebo and nocebo individual responses by investigating personality factors and expectations of pain decreases and increases. Psychological factors such as optimism, suggestibility, empathy and neuroticism have been linked to placebo effects, while pessimism, anxiety and catastrophizing have been associated to nocebo effects. We aimed to investigate the interplay between psychological factors, expectations of low and high pain and placebo hypoalgesia and nocebo hyperalgesia. We studied 46 healthy participants using a well-validated conditioning paradigm with contact heat thermal stimulations. Visual cues were presented to alert participants about the level of intensity of an upcoming thermal pain. We delivered high, medium and low levels of pain associated with red, yellow and green cues, respectively, during the conditioning phase. During the testing phase, the level of painful stimulations was surreptitiously set at the medium control level with all the three cues to measure placebo and nocebo effects. We found both robust placebo hypolagesic and nocebo hyperalgesic responses that were highly correlated with expectancy of low and high pain. Simple linear regression analyses showed that placebo responses were negatively correlated with anxiety severity and different aspects of fear of pain (e.g., medical pain, severe pain). Nocebo responses were positively correlated with anxiety sensitivity and physiological suggestibility with a trend toward catastrophizing. Step-wise regression analyses indicated that an aggregate score of motivation (value/utility and pressure/tense subscales) and suggestibility (physiological reactivity and persuadability subscales), accounted for the 51% of the variance in the placebo responsiveness. When considered together, anxiety severity, NEO openness-extraversion and depression accounted for the 49.1% of the variance of the nocebo responses. Psychological factors per se did not influence expectations. In fact, mediation analyses including expectations, personality factors and placebo and nocebo responses, revealed that expectations were not influenced by personality factors. These findings highlight the potential advantage of considering batteries of personality factors and measurements of expectation in predicting placebo and nocebo effects related to experimental acute pain.

Suggestibility and signal detection performance in hallucination-prone students

INTRODUCTION

Auditory hallucinations are associated with signal detection biases. We examine the extent to which suggestions influence performance on a signal detection task (SDT) in highly hallucination-prone and low hallucination-prone students. We also explore the relationship between trait suggestibility, dissociation and hallucination proneness.

METHOD

In two experiments, students completed on-line measures of hallucination proneness (the revised Launay-Slade Hallucination Scale; LSHS-R), trait suggestibility (Inventory of Suggestibility) and dissociation (Dissociative Experiences Scale-II). Students in the upper and lower tertiles of the LSHS-R performed an auditory SDT. Prior to the task, suggestions were made pertaining to the number of expected targets (Experiment 1, N = 60: high vs. low suggestions; Experiment 2, N = 62, no suggestion vs. high suggestion vs. no voice suggestion).

RESULTS

Correlational and regression analyses indicated that trait suggestibility and dissociation predicted hallucination proneness. Highly hallucination-prone students showed a higher SDT bias in both studies. In Experiment 1, both bias scores were significantly affected by suggestions to the same degree. In Experiment 2, highly hallucination-prone students were more reactive to the high suggestion condition than the controls.

CONCLUSION

Suggestions may affect source-monitoring judgments, and this effect may be greater in those who have a predisposition towards hallucinatory experiences.

Is There Consensus About Children's Memory and Suggestibility?

The modern scientific study of children's eyewitness memory was initially motivated, in important part, by the sensational preschool investigations and prosecutions of the 1980s and 1990s (e.g., the McMartin case, the Kelly Michaels case, the Country Walk case). These cases form the centerpiece of Professor Cheit's scholarly book, The Witch-Hunt Narrative. In recent years, researchers have made great strides in helping the legal system tackle some of the complex issues involved in child sexual abuse investigations. While commenting on Professor Cheit's book, we review areas of consensus regarding child forensic interviewing, areas of disconnect between scientific laboratory studies and needs of the legal system, and the potential effects of bias on the scientific enterprise relevant to Professor Cheit's treatise. Although we find that there is consensus in the field regarding a set of general principles, there is often room for disagreement in evaluating a particular case, and there is still much to be learned about how best to interview children when allegations of sexual abuse arise.

Eyewitness recall and suggestibility in individuals with Down syndrome

BACKGROUND

Many criminal justice professionals perceive the eyewitness skills of individuals with intellectual disabilities to be weaker than those of typically developing (TD) individuals. Down syndrome (DS) is one of the most common genetic causes of intellectual disabilities, yet there is no research addressing eyewitness skills in this population. This study examined the eyewitness recall and suggestibility of young people with DS.

METHOD

Young people with DS and mental age-matched TD children viewed a video of a non-violent petty crime and were subsequently asked to freely recall the event before being asked general and specific questions incorporating both misleading and non-leading prompts.

RESULTS

Compared with mental age-matched TD individuals, young people with DS produced as much information, were just as accurate and were no more suggestible.

CONCLUSIONS

The eyewitness memory skills of young people with DS are comparable to those of mental age-matched TD children. The implications of these findings for the forensic context and eyewitness memory are discussed.

Adversarial allegiance: The devil is in the evidence details, not just on the witness stand

This study examined the potential influence of adversarial allegiance on expert testimony in a simulated child sexual abuse case. A national sample of 100 witness suggestibility experts reviewed a police interview of an alleged 5-year-old female victim. Retaining party (prosecution, defense) and interview suggestibility (low, high) varied across experts. Experts were very willing to testify, but more so for the prosecution than the defense when interview suggestibility was low and vice versa when interview suggestibility was high. Experts' anticipated testimony focused more on prodefense aspects of the police interview and child's memory overall (negativity bias), but favored retaining party only when interview suggestibility was low. Prosecution-retained experts shifted their focus from prodefense aspects of the case in the high suggestibility interview to proprosecution aspects in the low suggestibility interview; defense experts did not. Blind raters' perceptions of expert focus mirrored those findings. Despite an initial bias toward retaining party, experts' evaluations of child victim accuracy and police interview quality were lower in the high versus low interview suggestibility condition only. Our data suggest that adversarial allegiance exists, that it can (but not always) influence how experts process evidence, and that it may be more likely in cases involving evidence that is not blatantly flawed. Defense experts may evaluate this type of evidence more negatively than prosecution experts because of negativity bias and positive testing strategies associated with confirmation bias. (PsycINFO Database Record

Valence, Implicated Actor, and Children's Acquiescence to False Suggestions

Although adverse effects of suggestive interviewing on children's accuracy are well documented, it remains unclear as to whether these effects vary depending on the valence of and the actor implicated in suggestions. In this study, 124 3-8-year-olds participated in a classroom activity and were later questioned about positive and negative false details. The interviewer provided positive reinforcement when children acquiesced to suggestions and negative feedback when they did not. Following reinforcement or feedback, young children were comparably suggestible for positive and negative details. With age, resistance to suggestions about negative details emerged first, followed by resistance to suggestions about positive details. Across age, more negative feedback was required to induce acquiescence to negative than positive false details. Finally, children were less willing to acquiesce when they (versus the confederate) were implicated. Findings highlight the interactive effects of valence and children's age on their eyewitness performance in suggestive contexts.

Insight into children's prosocial lies: Comment on Warneken and Orlins

In their article, Warneken and Orlins () provide insight into children's prosocial lie-telling. Their work adds to a growing body of literature regarding the development of prosocial behaviour and indicates that young children will tell 'white lies' in order to improve the mood of others. This work has important implications for forensic contexts that we note.

Is the dissociative adult suggestible? A test of the trauma and fantasy models of dissociation

Psychologists have long assumed a connection between traumatic experience and psychological dissociation. This hypothesis is referred to as the trauma model of dissociation. In the past decade, a series of papers have been published that question this traditional causal link, proposing an alternative fantasy model of dissociation. In the present research, the relationship among dissociation, suggestibility, and fantasy proneness was examined. Suggestibility was measured through the Gudjonsson Scale of Interrogative Suggestibility (GSS) as well as an autobiographically based version of this measure based on the events of September 11, 2001. Consistent with prior research and with the trauma model, dissociation correlated positively with trauma severity (r = .32, p < .01) and fantasy proneness (r = .60, p < .01). Inconsistent with the fantasy model, dissociation did not correlate with the neutral form of the GSS and correlated negatively (r = -.24, p < .05) with the trauma-focused form of this suggestibility measure. Although some participants did become quite emotional during the procedure, the risk/benefit ratio was perceived by almost all participants to be positive, with more reactive individuals evaluating the procedure more positively. The results consistently support the trauma model of dissociation and fail to support the fantasy model of dissociation.

Children's natural conversations following exposure to a rumor: linkages to later false reports

Previous research has shown that children naturally propagate overheard false rumors and that the circulation of such information can induce children and their peers to wrongly recall actually experiencing rumored-but-nonexperienced events. The current study extends this work by recording 3- to 6-year-olds' naturally occurring conversations following exposure to an erroneous rumor. Results indicate that, compared with children who overhear rumors spread by adults, those who pick up rumors from peers during natural interactions engage in deeper and more inventive rumor mongering. Moreover, the degree and originality of rumor propagation was linked with various qualities of children's subsequent recollections at both 1-week and 4-week delayed interviews. Furthermore, compared with 3- and 4-year-olds, 5- and 6-year-olds naturally transmitted more novel and coherent embellishments of the rumor to their peers, and more of their false narrative reports during the interviews overlapped with their own and their peers' utterances transmitted soon after the rumor was planted.

Natural Conversations as a Source of False Memories in Children: Implications for the Testimony of Young Witnesses

Research on factors that can affect the accuracy of children's autobiographical remembering has important implications for understanding the abilities of young witnesses to provide legal testimony. In this article, we review our own recent research on one factor that has much potential to induce errors in children's event recall, namely natural memory sharing conversations with peers and parents. Our studies provide compelling evidence that not only can the content of conversations about the past intrude into later memory but that such exchanges can prompt the generation of entirely false narratives that are more detailed than true accounts of experienced events. Further, our work show that deeper and more creative participation in memory sharing dialogues can boost the damaging effects of conversationally conveyed misinformation. Implications of this collection of findings for children's testimony are discussed.

False Memories for Suggestions: The Impact of Conceptual Elaboration

Relatively little attention has been paid to the potential role that reflecting on the meaning and implications of suggested events (i.e., conceptual elaboration) might play in promoting the creation of false memories. Two experiments assessed whether encouraging repeated conceptual elaboration, would, like perceptual elaboration, increase false memory for suggested events. Results showed that conceptual elaboration of suggested events more often resulted in high confidence false memories (Experiment 1) and false memories that were accompanied by the phenomenal experience of remembering them (Experiment 2) than did surface-level processing. Moreover, conceptual elaboration consistently led to higher rates of false memory than did perceptual elaboration. The false memory effects that resulted from conceptual elaboration were highly dependent on the organization of the postevent interview questions, such that conceptual elaboration only increased false memory beyond surface level processing when participants evaluated both true and suggested information in relation to the same theme or dimension.

Social processes affecting the mnemonic consequences of rumors on children's memory

This research examined whether the impact of overheard rumors on children's memory for their experiences varies as a function of social processes. The results of two experiments revealed that the very same errant rumor had different consequences for children's recollections depending on the degree and type of social interactions they had with peers after exposure to the rumor. In both experiments, 3- to 5-year-olds overheard a false rumor about a recently experienced event and then were interviewed about the event 1 week later. In Experiment 1, children were more likely to report experiencing rumored-but-nonoccurring information if they were allowed to interact naturally with peers following exposure to the rumor than if they were prevented from peer exchange. In Experiment 2, exposure to the rumor induced greater memory contamination if it was planted among familiar peers than if it was encountered among strangers.

Repeated questions, deception, and children's true and false reports of body touch

Four- to 7-year-olds' ability to answer repeated questions about body touch either honestly or dishonestly was examined. Children experienced a play event, during which one third of the children were touched innocuously. Two weeks later, they returned for a memory interview. Some children who had not been touched were instructed to lie during the interview and say that they had been touched. Children so instructed were consistent in maintaining the lie but performed poorly when answering repeated questions unrelated to the lie. Children who were not touched and told the truth were accurate when answering repeated questions. Of note, children who had been touched and told the truth were the most inconsistent. Results call into question the common assumption that consistency is a useful indicator of veracity in children's eyewitness accounts.