Cross‐Examination: Impact on Testimony

Abstract

When witnesses give evidence in adversarial trials, their testimony is open to scrutiny by the opposing party. This process is known as cross‐examination . Although the goal of cross‐examination is to uncover inaccuracies that may render the witness's testimony unreliable, recent research has cast doubt on cross‐examination as a means of eliciting accurate testimony, especially from children. In fact, the types of questions that lawyers ask witnesses during cross‐examination are the same types of questions that have been empirically shown to promote inaccuracy: leading questions, questions involving complex language, and questions that place strong social pressure on the witness. Under cross‐examination, child witnesses frequently change aspects of their earlier testimony. Laboratory research, however, has suggested that these changes may bear little relation to the truth. That is, children questioned about a staged event using an analog of cross‐examination tend to change both correct and incorrect information, resulting in a considerable decrease in accuracy. Adult witnesses also make changes to their testimony during cross‐examination, raising the possibility that concern about cross‐examination as a truth‐finding mechanism should not be limited to children. In light of these findings, it is crucial that research continues into the effect of cross‐examination on children's and adults' ability to provide accurate accounts of their past experiences.