Generalizations: The Grail and the Gremlins

AUTHORS: PATRICIA J. BAUER

The current state of psychological science and highlights a major goal of research: generalizing findings beyond their initial observations. In this article, the author points out various factors that hinder generalization, such as limited and unrepresentative samples, biased measurements and broad interpretations, as well as threats to the validity of stimuli and experimental designs. The author uses examples from cognitive research to demonstrate these challenges. It is argued that these practices diminish the authenticity of psychological research and, if unchecked, could make the discipline irrelevant and outdated, similar to the threat posed by practices that undermine rigor and replicability. The author proposes suggestions to improve research practices, aiming to develop a more valid, generalizable, and applicable science. By doing so, both basic and applied research in memory and cognition can be advanced.

Visual decision aids: Improving laypeople’s understanding of forensic science evidence

AUTHORS: GIANNI RIBEIRO, HELENA LIKWORNIK, JASON M. CHIN

Forensic science plays an important role in the criminal justice system; however, research and miscarriages of justice have demonstrated that laypeople can easily misunderstand the results of forensic tests. A large body of research in the medical domain suggests that visual decision aids can improve understanding of statistical information. In this article, the authors investigated the use of decision aids in the forensic domain through three experiments involving 879 participants. The findings showed a significant improvement in participants' comprehension of forensic science evidence when presented with visual decision aids. The results highlight the promising potential of decision aids in preventing miscarriages of justice and ensuring a clearer expression of forensic test error rates. As a result, these findings open new avenues for enhancing public understanding of forensic science evidence, fostering fairer legal outcomes.

Face value? How jurors evaluate eyewitness face recognition ability.

AUTHORS: ADELE QUIGLEY-MCBRIDE, WILLIAM CROZIER, CHAD S. DODSON, JENNIFER TEITCHER, BRANDON GARRETT

Although reports of post-identification confidence are not always reliable indicators of eyewitness accuracy, jurors rely heavily on eyewitness confidence to evaluate eyewitnesses. Face memory ability tests are helpful in providing objective information about a person’s ability to encode and recognise faces, enhancing the association between confidence statements and accuracy. This article explored the significance of face memory tests in evaluating the reliability of eyewitnesses. The authors investigated how jurors and lay persons interpret objective face memory information and its connection to post-identification confidence in a series of three experiments (N₁ = 3,143, N₂ = 1,156, N₃ = 3,180). The findings demonstrated that jurors were generally capable of understanding and integrating objective face memory information alongside eyewitness reports of confidence. However, an exception arose when eyewitnesses reported low confidence despite having strong face memory scores. These results highlight the potential of face memory tests to enhance the evaluation of eyewitness evidence.

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