Dr. Ray Joslyn'’s Laboratory

Examining Individual Differences During Analog Forensic Interviews. Research shows that people are sensitive to interviewer behavior during forensic interviews. The way an interviewer asks a question about a past event can affect the accuracy of the interviewee’s responses. For example, an interviewer may ask a question including co-witness information (e.g., “Your friend said there were two people in the car. Is that true?) or ask a suggestive question (e.g., “There were two people in the car, right?). These kinds of questions can produce more inaccurate responses than open-ended questions (e.g., “How many people were in the car?”). The interviewer’s reactions to the answers to their questions also affects future responding. Responding positively to incorrect answers and negatively to correct answers lowers the overall accuracy of responding in an analog interview.  

Despite the numerous studies that have been conducted in this area, very few of them have explored individuals’ sensitivity to these questioning approaches. Most research in this area has been conducted using large-n group designs which are ideal for answering some research questions but are not well suited for examining differences on the individual level. Recent research has shown that individuals respond differently to the behavior of the interviewer. For example, some people may be very sensitive to questions including co-witness information, but others are unaffected.  

Dr. Joslyn’s lab explores individual differences and idiosyncratic responding during analog forensic interviews. REU students will have the opportunity to lead research projects examining different variables affecting the accuracy of responding to questions in analog forensic interviews.