Individual and Social Influences on Witness Memory: The Role of Anxiety, Gender and Social Conformity

Yıl 2025, Cilt: 25 Sayı: 3, 1576 - 1599, 30.11.2025

Nurdan Ulusoy Kök , Ayşe Ayçiçeği Dinn , Wayne M. Dinn

https://doi.org/10.11616/asbi.1742568

Öz

This study investigated the effects of anxiety, gender, and social conformity on eyewitness testimony. 60 participants (47 female, 13 male) were witnessed to a live mock event, followed by an anxiety scale, a memory recall test, and a photo-based identification task. No significant relationship was found between anxiety levels and recall performance. While gender differences were not significant in recalling the target person’s appearance or event content, women exhibited significantly lower false alarm rates overall. Only 5% of participants conformed to the confederates’ incorrect identification. A notably result in terms of conformity is that it suggests that hair may have a significant effect on photo-identification. However, increasing the number of confederates did not enhance conformity rates. These findings highlight the complexity of social and cognitive factors influencing eyewitness accuracy.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Eyewitness Testimony , Memory , Anxiety Level , Gender Difference , Social Conformity

Tanık Belleğinde Bireysel ve Sosyal Etkiler: Kaygı, Cinsiyet ve Sosyal Uyumun Rolü

Öz

Bu araştırmada görgü tanıklarının olaya dair hatırlama doğrulukları üzerinde kaygı düzeyi, cinsiyet ve sosyal uyumun etkisi incelenmiştir. Bu amaçla çalışmada kaygı düzeyini değerlendiren ölçekler, tanıklık için kurgulanmış canlı bir olay, olayla ilgili bellek testi ve teşhis slaytı kullanılmış olup 60 katılımcının (47 kadın, 13 erkek) verisi analiz edilmiştir. Kaygı düzeyi ile tanıkların olayı hatırlama performansları arasında anlamlı bir ilişkinin olmadığı görülmüştür. Olaydaki kişinin görünüşü ve olay içeriğini hatırlama performansları açısından cinsiyetler arasında anlamlı bir fark olmamasına rağmen genel olarak bellek testinde kadınların yanlış alarm oranının anlamlı şekilde daha az olduğu saptanmıştır. Olaydaki kişinin fotoğraftan teşhisinde katılımcıların sadece %5’i işbirlikçi katılımcıların yanlış teşhisine sosyal uyum göstermiştir. Uyum açısından dikkat çeken bir sonuç, fotoğraftan teşhiste saçın önemli bir etkisinin olabileceğini düşündürmesidir. Grup büyüklüğünün artmasının uyum davranışını arttırmadığı görülmüştür.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Görgü Tanıklığı , Bellek , Kaygı Düzeyi , Cinsiyet Farklılıkları , Sosyal Uyum

Teşekkür

Araştırmanın veri analizi sürecindeki önerileri dolayısıyla Doç. Dr. Sevda Bulduk’a teşekkür ederiz.

Kaynakça

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