Increasing the identification accuracy of child eyewitnesses with identification procedures

This thesis consists of three studies examining the identification abilities of child eyewitnesses and procedures developed to improve their identification accuracy. The first chapter provides a general introduction to identification research. Chapter 2 examines the identification accuracy of children compared to adults using meta-analytic techniques; this chapter will appear in Law and Human Behavior (1998). The third chapter examines 4 procedural modifications to a 'standard' lineup procedure (i.e., simultaneous lineup) and will appear in Expert Evidence (1998). Chapter 4 describes a hypothesized Two-Judgment Theory of Lineup Identification and investigates identification procedures designed based on this Theory. Chapter 4 has been submitted for publication. Chapter 5 provides a general discussion. Results from these three studies suggest that (a) children over the age of 5 years produce correct identifications at a rate comparable to adults; however, children produce significantly more false positives shown a lineup that does not contain the criminal than adults; (b) Procedures designed and examined to decrease false positive responding in children by reducing the social demands to make a selection were ineffective, however, these procedures may slightly aid correct identification; (c) Compared to simultaneous lineup presentation, procedures developed based on the Two-Judgment Theory of Lineup Identification (called Elimination lineup procedures), produce significantly lower false positive responding rates in children; these child false positive rates are similar to adult rates; Finally, (d) compared to simultaneous lineup presentation, Elimination procedures do not significantly decrease children's correct identification rates. The Two-Judgment Theory of Lineup Identification provides the first theoretical framework to understand the processes involved in identification for both children and adults. Furthermore, the procedures developed present promise for successful real world implementation.