Date of Award
Spring 5-27-2020
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department/Program
Forensic Psychology
Language
English
First Advisor or Mentor
Margaret Kovera
Second Reader
Steven Penrod
Third Advisor
Saul Kassin
Abstract
Video-recorded eyewitness identification procedures can preserve an accurate record of the conditions under which the eyewitness made an identification. Scholars posit that having the record will allow legal actors to make better decisions on the basis of an identification. Yet limited research has examined how jurors’ judgments are influenced by this evidence. Research on other types of video-recorded evidence has demonstrated a strong camera perspective bias, wherein jurors’ judgments are influenced by the angle with which the evidence is recorded. This study examined whether the camera perspective bias similarly influences jurors’ perceptions of video-recorded identification procedures. Participants viewed a mock trial that varied whether the eyewitness was visible during the identification (visible, not visible), whether the administrator was visible during the identification (visible, not visible), whether the administrator knew the identity of the suspect (single-, double-blind), and how certain the eyewitness was in her identification (uncertain, certain). We expected that participants would rate the person on whom the video-record focused as more responsible for the identification, which would influence their ultimate verdict decisions. Our results did not support camera perspective bias in this context, indicating that the camera angle that video-recorded eyewitness identification procedures are recorded from may not influence jurors’ decision making. However, jurors who saw a video-recording of the eyewitness identification procedure were more sensitive to the suggestive nature of single-blind administrations, providing support for the recommendation to video record eyewitness identification procedures.
Recommended Citation
Doherty, Kelsey N., "Not All Videos are Created Equal: Camera Perspective Bias and Video-recorded Eyewitness Identification Procedures" (2020). CUNY Academic Works.
https://academicworks.cuny.edu/jj_etds/182
Included in
Criminal Law Commons, Criminal Procedure Commons, Legal Studies Commons, Psychology Commons