The eyewitness post‐identification feedback effect: What is the function of flexible confidence estimates for autobiographical events?

Suggesting to eyewitnesses who mistakenly identify someone from a lineup that they identified the right person leads them to recall having been more certain, having a better view during witnessing, and having paid closer attention during witnessing. The post‐identification feedback effect is robust and has profound forensic implications because the courts relay on witnesses' answers to these questions to make decisions about the reliability of the identification. The effect seems to occur because there is not an accessible memory trace formed about these retrospective judgments, thereby making witnesses rely on an inference process that responds to the feedback. We speculate on the function served by a cognitive system that does not form accessible memory traces for these judgments.