Marianna E. Carlucci

The response order effect: People believe the first person who remembers an event

When groups of people remember an event, the order in which they discuss their memories is important. In three experiments, a response order effect was shown in which participants believed the first speaker to be more accurate and more confident than a subsequent speaker. Further, participants were more likely to report as their own memory what the first speaker reported than what a subsequent speaker reported. The experiments showed that the response order effect was not due to intrinsic characteristics of what the first speaker said. Even when participants chose the response order themselves and the speakers’ dialogue was counterbalanced, participants still believed that the first speaker was more accurate and confident than a subsequent speaker. Because in most situations the person who introduces a particular topic into a discussion is more accurate, people may assume that this is true, even when the response order is random.

The Selective Cue Integration Framework: A Theory of Postidentification Witness Confidence Assessment.

The current manuscript proposes a theory of how witnesses assess their confidence following a lineup identification, called the selective cue integration framework (SCIF). Drawing from past research on the postidentification feedback effect, the SCIF details a three-stage process of confidence assessment that is based largely on a conceptualization of feedback-produced confidence inflation as an attitude change phenomenon. According to the SCIF, when asked to assess their confidence, witnesses assess the strength of their internal accuracy cues (assessment stage). If weak, witnesses look specifically for external accuracy cues that can justify their identification decision (search stage). Finally, these justifying external cues are submitted to a credibility check (evaluation stage); if no credibility-undermining information is uncovered, they become integrated into ones confidence assessment. Three studies used college students as mock-witnesses to test predictions derived from the SCIF. In study 1a, lineup identification confidence was unaffected by disconfirming feedback unless that statement recanted previously administered confirming feedback, suggesting the existence of different stages in the confidence assessment process. Study 1b demonstrated that the effects of recanted feedback depend only on a discrediting of the feedback itself, and not on the discrediting of the identification. Study 2 demonstrated the generality of the SCIF by showing its predictive ability within a novel and methodologically improved postidentification cowitness feedback paradigm. Results across all three studies supported the SCIF as a theoretical framework for witness confidence assessment, suggest a new means of eliminating the feedback effect, and unite postidentification feedback and cowitness phenomena under a common theoretical umbrella.

The fallout of forgiveness How forgiveness predicts third-party perceptions of the forgiver and the forgiver’s relationships

Forgiveness within romantic relationships may have broader consequences. Two studies investigated how forgiveness decisions predict outsiders’ perceptions of individuals and their relationships. Study 1 (n = 364) used an experimental between-subject design and hypothetical vignettes to manipulate forgiveness, offense severity, and offense frequency. As hypothesized, participants perceived forgiving targets as more committed and satisfied, and the relation between forgiveness and person perceptions depended on offense frequency (competence) and severity (competence and warmth). In Study 2, participants (n = 134) recalled friends’ offenses. Forgiveness predicted perceived commitment, satisfaction, investment, warmth, and competence, at times interacting with severity and frequency, while accounting for intent and apologies. The findings are discussed in light of the importance of perceptions and social networks.

Associations among body dissatisfaction, gender, and three latent profiles of religiosity

ABSTRACT Body dissatisfaction is a too-common issue for young women in the US. Body dissatisfaction is a rising issue with young men too, although their average body dissatisfaction remains lower than young women’s. Religiosity has been negatively linked to body dissatisfaction for women, but the relation for men is unclear. The current study (N = 5104) built upon a previous latent profile analysis of a large, diverse sample of US. college students Multi-Site University Study of Identity and Culture (MUSIC). We examined whether body dissatisfaction scores were related to three religious classes, when depressive symptoms were controlled for, and whether gender moderated that potential relation. Body dissatisfaction scores were significantly related to religious class. Gender had a main effect although not a moderating effect: men had better body dissatisfaction than women did, and their religious class similarly affected their body dissatisfaction scores. Religiosity appears important for emerging adult men’s body dissatisfaction, like for emerging adult women.

Juror perceptions of female-female sexual harassment: do sexual orientation and type of harassment matter?

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate how mock jurors perceive female-female sexual harassment. Design/methodology/approach Participants read a case vignette depicting female-female workplace sexual harassment where the sexual orientation of the harasser (lesbian vs heterosexual) and type of sexual harassment (approach vs reject vs generalized) were randomly assigned across participants. Participants were asked to make a liability determination for the case. They were also asked to rate the unwanted conduct on several legally relevant dimensions (e.g. severity, pervasiveness, and unwelcomeness). Findings Results revealed that the sexual orientation of the harasser is an important factor used to make legal decisions in same-sex sexual harassment cases. Participants found the same conduct to be more severe, pervasive, unwelcome, and threatening when the harasser was lesbian than when she was heterosexual. As hypothesized, female participants found more evidence of discrimination than male participants. Research limitations/implications These findings illustrate biases mock jurors may hold when making legal decisions in female-female sexual harassment cases. Practical implications Results are discussed in the context of decision-making models and possible future directions and interventions are explored. Originality/value The findings extend the literature on female same-sex sexual harassment.