The emotional witness effect: story content, emotional valence and credibility of a male suspect

Abstract

Most previous studies of the relation between emotional expression and perceived credibility carried out in the context of witness research have focused on female witnesses, frequently cast in the role of victims of crimes. In this study the focus is shifted, examining the impact of emotional expression on judgments of credibility of a young man suspected of rape, and on judgments of the probability of a guilty verdict in a hypothetical trial. Mock jurors (n 0179) viewed one of six videorecorded free recall statements of the incident. Two versions of the testimony were constructed, varying slightly with respect to admitted use of physical force and resistance from the victim. The statements were given with one of three emotional expressions, termed negative, neutral and positive. Credibility judgments were strongly influenced by the emotions displayed but not by the content of the statement whereas judgments of the probability of guilt were not affected by the emotions displayed but were significantly affected by the content of the statement. The results suggest that emotional expression impacts perceived credibility independent of witness gender and victim/offender status.

The importance of looking credible: the impact of the behavioural sequelae of post-traumatic stress disorder on the credibility of asylum seekers

“…Rather than interacting with perceived cues to deception to reduce credibility, this study's finding that participants expected the asylum seeker to exhibit signs of emotion supports the literature on the 'emotional witness effect' (Wessel et al, 2012). In reviewing the robust evidence that rape victims expressing negative emotions are judged more credible than those expressing neutral or positive emotions, Wessel et al tested whether this effect applies more generally to stereotypes applied to those recounting negatively emotionally laden situations.…”

The Probability of Guilt in Criminal Cases: Are People Aware of Being ‘Beyond Reasonable Doubt’?

“…The participants ( N = 1248) included samples of young and elderly prospective jury members under experimental conditions where the testimonies of the victim and the accused were presented to different participants (Bollingmo et al, ; Kaufmann, Drevland, Wessel, Overskeid, & Magnussen, ; Wessel et al, ; Wessel, Drevland, Eilertsen, & Magnussen, ) or the same participants (Wessel, Tennebø, Seljeseth, Eilertsen, & Magnussen, in preparation), to laypersons in a mock jury setting with jury deliberation (Dahl et al, ), to experienced police investigators (Bollingmo, Wessel, Eilertsen, & Magnussen, ),and to trial judges (Wessel et al, ). Table gives a summary of the experimental conditions and the participant samples.…”

Expressed Emotions and Perceived Credibility of Child Mock Victims Disclosing Physical Abuse

“…The results of the recent studies highlight the importance of the emotional expression accompanying witness statements for the perceived credibility of adult victims of violence and abuse (Baldry & Winkel, 1998;Bornstein & Wiener, 2009;Kaufmann, Drevland, Wessel, Overskeid, & Magnussen, 2003;Maroney, 2006;Nadler & Rose, 2003;Zammuner, 2000), and possibly for witnesses in general (Ask & Lanström, 2010;Heath, 2009;Heath, Granneman, & Peacock, 2004;Wessel, Bollingmo, Sønsteby, Nielsen, Eilertsen, & Magnussen, 2012), suggesting that judgments of credibility are based on social stereotypes of appropriate behavior of individuals in such positions (Klippenstein & Schuller, 2012;Tsoudis & Smith-Lovin, 1998;Wessel et al, 2012). In line with the studies cited above, a series of experiments from our laboratory, investigating the relationship between expressed emotions and perceived credibility of a rape victim (reviewed by Magnussen & Wessel, 2010), show that when a female victim displays negative emotions-sadness and despair-she is perceived more credible than when she is emotionally neutral or showing a nervously smiling, positive reaction, even if all of these emotional reactions are normal and represented in actual police interviews with rape victims (Magnussen & Wessel, 2010).…”