TY - JOUR
T1 - What can we remember after complex denials?
T2 - The impact of different false denials on memory
AU - Battista, Fabiana
AU - Curci, Antonietta
AU - Mangiulli, Ivan
AU - Otgaar, Henry
N1 - Funding Information:
We would like to thank Dalila De Bari and Barbara Simini for their help in collecting data. This study was supported by a C1 grant from KU Leuven awarded to Henry Otgaar.
Funding Information:
We would like to thank Dalila De Bari and Barbara Simini for their help in collecting data. This study was supported by a C1 grant from KU Leuven awarded to Henry Otgaar.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
PY - 2021/10/21
Y1 - 2021/10/21
N2 - False denial is a deceptive strategy that requires fewer cognitive resources than other strategies (e.g. simulating amnesia, fabrication). In the present experiment, we examined the effects of different types of false denials varying in cognitive load on memory. Participants (N = 159) watched a video (theft) and then answered some questions about it. Some participants had to tell the truth about the theft, while others were either asked to falsely deny all the event-related details (i.e. simple false denial) or to falsely deny just some details of the same event (i.e. complex false denial). After two days, all participants completed a memory task in which they truthfully recognized whether details were (i) discussed during the interview or (ii) seen in the video. Additionally, recall scores (i.e. correct details, omissions, commissions) of the memory for the event were assessed. Participants who falsely denied all details reported a higher memory impairment for the interview than the other groups. Interestingly, liars who were engaged in complex denying had the largest memory impairment for the event and reported more commissions than those in the simple false denial group. This experiment shows that under certain conditions, memory is increasingly impaired for high cognitive load lies.
AB - False denial is a deceptive strategy that requires fewer cognitive resources than other strategies (e.g. simulating amnesia, fabrication). In the present experiment, we examined the effects of different types of false denials varying in cognitive load on memory. Participants (N = 159) watched a video (theft) and then answered some questions about it. Some participants had to tell the truth about the theft, while others were either asked to falsely deny all the event-related details (i.e. simple false denial) or to falsely deny just some details of the same event (i.e. complex false denial). After two days, all participants completed a memory task in which they truthfully recognized whether details were (i) discussed during the interview or (ii) seen in the video. Additionally, recall scores (i.e. correct details, omissions, commissions) of the memory for the event were assessed. Participants who falsely denied all details reported a higher memory impairment for the interview than the other groups. Interestingly, liars who were engaged in complex denying had the largest memory impairment for the event and reported more commissions than those in the simple false denial group. This experiment shows that under certain conditions, memory is increasingly impaired for high cognitive load lies.
KW - False denials
KW - cognitive load
KW - denial-induced forgetting
KW - memory outcomes
U2 - 10.1080/1068316X.2020.1865956
DO - 10.1080/1068316X.2020.1865956
M3 - Article
SN - 1068-316X
VL - 27
SP - 914
EP - 931
JO - Psychology Crime & Law
JF - Psychology Crime & Law
IS - 9
ER -