Identifying the Misinformation Effect

Medium Unit 5: Cognitive Psychology Forgetting And Memory Construction

In cognitive psychology, the reliability of memory can often be called into question, particularly due to the potential for memory distortions and misattributions. One famous phenomenon is the "misinformation effect," which occurs when a person's recall of episodic memories becomes less accurate because of information presented after the event. This phenomenon has important implications for eyewitness testimony and the legal system. Given this context, which of the following scenarios best exemplifies the misinformation effect?

A witness remembers seeing a blue car at the scene of an accident only to later find out that it was actually a red car.

A student recalls a vivid childhood memory that includes people and events that may have never happened.

An individual recalls the lyrics of a song incorrectly after hearing a cover version that changed some of the words.

A person insists that they saw a news report about an event even though they have never watched the news.

A witness is prompted with misleading questions about the accident and later mistakenly includes the false details in their testimony.

Hint

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