Abstract
Children can easily be made to believe that they have seen or experienced something that they never did. This phenomenon is called the misinformation effect. In this paper I examine the mechanisms underlying the misinformation effect in 6- and 9-year-old children, by investigating the influence of two metacognitive variables, source monitoring and self-efficacy, on child suggestibility (Experiment 1). Several investigations have reported that source monitoring is one factor at play in creating the misinformation effect. As for self-efficacy, this is the first attempt to investigate its relationship with memory suggestibility. It is demonstrated that source monitoring is related to memory suggestibility in younger children, whereas self-efficacy plays a role in suggestibility mainly in older children. This indicates that suggestibility may be due to two different mechanisms at the two ages examined. Experiment 2 was designed to test this age-interactive hypothesis. Results confirmed that the misinformation effect in younger children was mainly due to genuine memory errors, whereas in older children it was mainly due to acceptance of the misleading information.
Résumé
Les enfants peuvent être facilement conduits à croire qu’ils ont vu quelque chose, ou fait l’expérience de quelque chose, qu’ils n’ont jamais vu ou fait. Ce phénomène est appelé l’effet d’information erronée. L’auteur examine les mécanismes sous-tendant cet effet chez des enfants de 6 et 9 ans, en étudiant l’influence de deux variables métacognitives, contrôlabilité de la source et sentiment d’auto-efficacité, sur la suggestibilité enfantine (1ère expérience). Plusieurs recherches ont indiqué que la contrôlabilité de la source est un facteur en jeu dans la création de l’effet d’information erronée. En ce qui concerne le sentiment d’auto-efficacité, c’est la première tentative d’étude des relations avec la suggestibilité de la mémoire. On montre que la contrôlabilité de la source entretient des relation avec la suggestibilité de la mémoire chez les plus jeunes enfants, alors que le sentiment d’auto-efficacité joue un rôle surtout chez les enfants plus âgés. Cela signifie que la suggestibilité peut être due à deux processus différents aux deux âges étudiés. La seconde expérience a eu pour but de tester cette hypothèse d’interaction avec l’âge. Les résultats confirment que l’effet d’information erronée chez les jeunes enfants a été dû principalement à d’authentiques erreurs de mémoire, alors que chez les enfants plus âgés il a été dû principalement à l’acceptation d’informations erronées.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Belli, R.F. (1989). Influences of misleading post-event information: Misinformation interference and acceptance.Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 118, 72–85.
Belli, R.F., Lindsay, D.S., Gales, M.S., & McCarthy, T.T. (1994). Memory impairment and source misattribution in postevent misinformation experiments with short retention intervals.Memory and Cognition, 22, 40–54.
Borkowski, J.G., Carr, M., Rellinger, E., & Pressley, M. (1990). Self-regulated cognition. Interdependence of metacognition, attributions and self-esteem. In B.F. Jones & L. Idol (Eds.),Dimensions of thinking and cognitive instructions (pp. 53–92). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
Borkowski, J.G., Ryan, E.B., Kurtz, B.E., & Reid, M.K. (1983). Metamemory and metalinguistic development: Correlates of children’s intelligence and achievement.Bulletin of the Psychonomic Society, 21, 393–396.
Brainerd, C.J. (1995). Interference processes in memory development: The case of cognitive triage. In F.N. Dempster & C.J. Brainerd (Eds.),Interference and inhibition in cognition (pp. 105–139). San Diego: Academic Press.
Brainerd, C.J., Reyna, V.F., Howe, M.L., & Kingma, J. (1990). The development of forgetting and reminiscence.Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development,55 (3–4, Serial No. 222).
Brown, A.L. (1978). Knowing when, where, and how to remember: A problem of metacognition. In R. Glaser (Ed.),Advances in instructional psychology (pp. 77–165). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
Brown, A.L., Bransford, J.D., Ferrara, R.A., & Campione, J.C. (1983). Learning, remembering, and understanding. In J.H. Flavell & E.M. Markman (Eds.),Handbook of child psychology (Vol. III, Cognitive Development, pp. 77–166). New York: Wiley.
Bruck, M., Ceci, S.J., Francoeur, E., & Barr, R. (1995). “I hardly cried when I got my shot!”: Influencing children’s memories about a visit to their pediatrician.Child Development, 66, 193–208.
Ceci, S.J., & Bruck, M. (1993). Suggestibility of the child witness: A historical review and synthesis.Psychological Bulletin, 115, 403–439.
Ceci, S.J., Ross, D., & Toglia, M. (1987). Age differences in suggestibility: Psycholegal implications.Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 117, 38–49.
Cornoldi, C. (in press). The impact of metacognitive reflection on cognitive control. In G. Mazzoni, T.O. Nelson (Eds.),Monitoring and control processes in metacognition and cognitive neuropsychology. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
DeBeni, R., & Mazzoni, G. (1991). Attribuzione e fiducia nelle proprie abilita’ mnestiche, il livello strategico e la prestazione di memoria in bambini di eta’ diverse.Età Evolutiva, 38, 32–50.
DeBeni, R., Mazzoni, G., & Pagotto, S. (in press). Autostima, attribuzione e meta-conoscenza in soggetti anziani.Ricerche di Psicologia.
Fivush, R., & Shukat, J. (1995). What young children recall: Issues of content, consistency, and coherence of early autobiographical recall. In M.S. Zaragoza, J.R. Graham, G.C.N. Hall, R. Hirschman, & Y.S. Ben-Porath (Eds.),Memory and testimony in the child witness (pp. 5–23). Thousand Oaks, Ca: Sage.
Foley, M.A., Johnson, M.K., & Raye, C.L. (1983). Age-related changes in confusion between memories for thoughts and memories for speech.Child Development, 54, 51–60.
Garry, M.A. & Loftus, E.F., & Brown, S.W. (1994). Memory: A river runs through it.Consciousness & Cognition, 3, 438–451.
Goodman, G.S., Aman, C., & Hirshman, J. (1987). Child sexual and physical abuse: Children’s testimony. In Ceci, S.J., Toglia, M.P., & Ross, D.F. (Eds.),Children’s eyewitness memory (pp. 1–23). New York, Springer Verlag.
Harris, P., Brown, E., Marriott, C., Whittall, S., & Harmer, S. (1991). Monsters, ghosts and witches: Testing the limits of the fantasy-reality distinction in young children.British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 9, 105–123.
Herrmann, D.J. (1989).Self-efficacy questionnaire. Unpublished manuscript.
Hertzog, C., & Dixon, R.A. (1994). Metacognitive development ina adulthood and old age. In J. Metcalfe & A.P. Shimamura (Eds.),Metacognition: Knowing about knowing (pp. 227–251). Cambridge, MA, MIT Press.
Hertzog, C., Dixon, R.A., & Hultsch, D.F. (1990). Metamemory in adulthood: Differentiating knowledge, belief and behavior. In T.M. Hess (Ed.),Aging and cognition: Knowledge organization and utilization (pp. 161–212). New York, Wiley.
Johnson, M.K., Hashtroudi, S., & Lindsay, D.S. (1993). Source Monitoring.Psychological Bulletin, 114, 3–28.
Kail, R.V. (1989).The development of memory in children (2nd ed.), New York: Freeman.
Kail, R.V., & Hagen, J.W. (Eds.) (1977).Perspectives on the development of memory and cognition. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
Lindsay, D.S., & Johnson, M.K. (1989). The eyewitness suggestibility effect and memory for sources.Memory and Cognition, 17, 349–358.
Lindsay, D.S., Johnson, M.K., & Kwon, P. (1991). Developmental changes in source monitoring.Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 52, 297–318.
Loftus, E.F. (1975). Leading questions and the eyewitness report.Cognitive Psychology, 7, 560–572.
Loftus, E.F., Miller, D.G., & Burns, H.J. (1978). Semantic integration of verbal information into a visual memory.Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Learning and Memory, 4, 19–31.
Loftus, E.F., Garry, M., Brown, S.W., & Reder, M. (1994). Near-natal memories, past-life memories and other memory myths.American Journal of Clinical Hypnosis.
Lynn, S.L. (1996).Hypnotizability and suggestibility. Paper presented at the IV ASI NATO Meeting on Memory for Traumatic Events, Port Bourgenay.
Mazzoni, G. (1991). Differenze individuali nella tendenza alla suggestionabilita’.Età Evolutiva, 38, 21–32.
Mazzoni, G., & De Beni, R. (1989).The relationship between metamemory and memory: Attribution and memory beliefs on strategy and memory. 10th Biennal Meeting of ISSBD, Yuvaskyla, Finland.
McCloskey, M., & Zaragoza, M. (1985). Postevent information and memory: Reply to Loftus, Schooler, & Wagenaar.Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 114, 381–387.
Morison, P., & Gardner, H. (1978). Dragons and dinosaurs: The child’s capacity to differentiate fantasy from reality.Child Development, 49, 642–648.
Nelson, T.O., & Narens, L. (1990). Metamemory: A theoretical framework and some new findings. In G.H. Bower (Ed.),The Psychology of Learning and Motivation (vol. 26, pp. 125–173). New York: Academic Press.
Ornstein, P.A. (Ed.) (1978).Memory development in children. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
Ornstein, P.A., Gordon, B.N., & Larus, D. (1992). Children’s memory for a personally experienced event: Implications for testimony.Applied Cognitive Psychology, 6, 49–60.
Poole, D. A., & Lindsay, D.S. (1995). Interviewing preschoolers: effects of nonsuggestive techniques, parental coaching and leading questions on reports of nonexperienced events.Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 80, 129–154.
Pressley, M., & Ghatala, E.S. (1989). Metacognitive benefits of taking a test for children and young adolescents.Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 47, 430–450.
Ringel, B.A., & Springer, C.J. (1980). On knowing how well one is remembering: The persistence of strategy use during transfer.Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 29, 322–333.
Rudy, L., & Goodman, G.S. (1991). Effects of participation in children’s reports: Implications for children’s testimony.Developmental Psychology, 27, 527–538.
Schneider, W. (1986). The role of conceptual knowledge and metamemory in the development of organizational processes in memory.Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 42, 218–236.
Schneider, W., Borkowski, J.G., Kurtz, B.E., & Kerwin, K. (1986). Metamemory and motivation: A comparison of strategy use and performance in German and American children.Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 17, 315–336.
Schneider W., & Pressley, M. (1989).Memory development between two and twenty. New York: Springer-Verlag.
Toglia, M.P., Ross, D.F., Ceci, S.J. (1992). The suggestibility of children’s memory: A cognition and social-psychological interpretation. In M.H. Howe, C.J. Brainerd, & V.F. Reyna (Eds.),The development of long-term retention (pp. 217–241). New York: Springer-Verlag.
Weingardt, K.R., Loftus, E.F., & Lindsay, D.S. (1995). Misinformation revisited: New evidence on the suggestibility of memory.Memory and Cognition, 23, 72–82.
Winograd, E., Glover, T.A., & Peluso, J. (1996).Individual differences in susceptibility to memory illusions. Poster presented at the 37th Annual Meeting of the Psychonomic Society, Chicago.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Mazzoni, G. Memory suggestibility and metacognition in child eyewitness testimony: The roles of source monitoring and self-efficacy. Eur J Psychol Educ 13, 43–60 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03172812
Received:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03172812