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Social cognition, attribution, and eyewitness testimony

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Given the social psychological theories of attribution and social cognition, is it possible to get an accurate, objective description of an event from an eyewitness? Why or why not?

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Solution Summary

A description of the relevance of attribution and social cognition theories in determining the validity and reliability of eyewitness testimony.

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Our brains engage in very complex processes, two of which include constructing and reconstructing memories. Because our brains are so creative and complex, there are many factors that go into storing and recalling memories that may impact the accuracy of recollection. Sometimes our brains take the liberty of adding or deleting critical details as a result. Our ways of thinking strongly impact these processes and how we interpret and remember things. This is where attribution and social cognition theory are relevant in recollection (eyewitness testimony). Social cognition is a theory that explains how our brains interpret things in social situations. This influences how we process information in these situations. Our own ideas and opinions about ...

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