ABSTRACT
Experimental manipulations of context in studies of visual and verbal memory have established that the “setting” or “cognitive environment” (Tulving, 1983) in which a stimulus is presented will influence recognition memory (see Davies & Thomson, 1988; Memon & Bruce, 1985, for reviews). Taking a step outside the laboratory, the potential application of research on context effects is readily apparent. University students constantly complain that they have difficulty reproducing the knowledge acquired in the classroom or library in the examination hall. Eyewitnesses to crimes frequently report difficulty in giving complete and detailed accounts (Wagenaar, 1988). In the latter example, of course, the accuracy and detail of a memory report is critical and yet the eyewitness literature reveals that such recall is difficult to achieve (e.g., Goodman, Aman, & Hirschman, 1987). In a recent paper on suggestions for expanding the Practical Aspects of Memory Movement, Herrmann and Gruneberg (1993) strongly suggested that we employ basic research in the solution of real-world problems. The study presented in this chapter takes a step in this direction by asking whether mental reinstatement of context is an effective aid to retrieval in an eyewitness interview. Before describing the research, a brief description of the literature on the utility of context reinstatement as a means of enhancing recall is provided.
