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Memory phenomena in the law
Author(s) -
Johnson Molly Treadway
Publication year - 1993
Publication title -
applied cognitive psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.719
H-Index - 100
eISSN - 1099-0720
pISSN - 0888-4080
DOI - 10.1002/acp.2350070705
Subject(s) - psychology , jury , jury instructions , context (archaeology) , memory errors , law , cognitive psychology , social psychology , political science , recall , paleontology , biology
Memory issues arise in the law in many different ways. At the most fundamental level, assumptions about memory are inherent in both substantive laws and procedural rules that govern the operation of the legal system. For example, the rules and procedures used to govern the conduct of jury trials reflect a great deal of faith in jurors' ability to understand and retain information over long periods of time, often with much intervening information. Memory issues also arise in the context of individual cases. For example, the ability of an attorney to satisfactorily prosecute or defend a case on behalf of a client often relies largely upon the completeness and accuracy of the memory of the client and other witnesses. This paper discusses examples of memory issues in the law and describes how applied research on these issues can be used to inform basic memory theory, particularly with respect to the relationship between emotion and memory.