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Related Concept Videos

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 18, 2026

Using a Classroom-Based Deese Roediger McDermott Paradigm to Assess the Effects of Imagery on False Memories
08:53

Using a Classroom-Based Deese Roediger McDermott Paradigm to Assess the Effects of Imagery on False Memories

Published on: November 14, 2018

Reevaluating the potency of the memory conformity effect.

Glen E Bodner1, Elisabeth Musch, Tanjeem Azad

  • 1Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, Alberta, Canada. bodner@ucalgary.ca

Memory & Cognition
|November 26, 2009
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Memory conformity occurs when witnesses share details acquired from others. This study found that explicit instructions to monitor memory sources significantly reduced this effect, mitigating risks from co-witness collaboration.

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Using Practice Testing, Public Speaking, and Source Monitoring to Examine the Influences of Learning Strategies and Stress on Episodic Memory
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Published on: June 14, 2019

Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Eyewitness Testimony
  • Memory Research

Background:

  • Witnesses may incorporate details from other sources into their own memory.
  • The memory conformity effect describes the tendency to adopt details from co-witnesses.
  • Understanding the mechanisms and mitigation of memory conformity is crucial for legal settings.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To reevaluate the potency of the memory conformity effect.
  • To investigate methods for reducing the influence of secondary sources on witness recall.
  • To examine the impact of source monitoring instructions on memory conformity.

Main Methods:

  • Participants viewed a crime video and were exposed to non-witnessed details through discussion, reading reports, or watching altered videos.
  • Experiment 1 assessed recall and source attribution without specific instructions.
  • Experiment 2 included explicit warnings about reporting details solely from secondary sources, followed by a source-judgment test.

Main Results:

  • Participants frequently reported non-witnessed details, but often correctly attributed them to the secondary source.
  • Group discussion did not increase the reporting of non-witnessed details compared to reading reports or watching videos.
  • Post-warning instructions in Experiment 2 substantially reduced the memory conformity effect.

Conclusions:

  • The memory conformity effect is potent but can be influenced by how information is acquired.
  • Explicitly encouraging source monitoring at the time of recall can significantly mitigate memory conformity.
  • These findings have implications for improving the reliability of eyewitness accounts after co-witness collaboration.