Find an acquaintance willing to watch a short clip of a car crash (it is no worse than what you'd see on Mythbusters):

 

1.  
   • Tell them this explicitly - "My professor is asking us to do the assignment to see how well people remember a crime scene. Is it okay if I show you a ten second clip of a re-created car crash and ask you some questions about what you remember?"
     
     
     • If they answer no, then DO NOT proceed.
       
        
     • If they answer yes, proceed to show them this video BUT ONLY SHOW IT ONE TIME - You will need to maintain control of the video player, so it is easiest to use your own phone or computer.
       • https://youtu.be/Rg5bBJQOL74
     • If they answer yes, and after they view the video (ONLY ONCE), ask them the following questions - do not let them know if they are right or wrong, or whether you agree or disagree, and tell them you can't confirm for them until the test is completely done:
       • What color was the car that was speeding?
       • What color was the barn?
       • What color was the car that was driving on the wrong side of the road?
       • What color were the houses?
       • How many vehicles were in the video?
       • On a scale of 1 to 10, how confident are you in your answers?
         
          
     • You may review the video again with your acquaintance should they want to ONLY AFTER they answer all five questions.
       
        
     • What you will be graded on:
       • Tell me the relationship of your acquaintance to you
       • List their answers to the five questions.
       • Provide a few sentences about the results you found in terms of your acquaintance's accuracy.  Did they do better than you expected? Worse? What do you think contributed to their performance?
       • Explain to me briefly how the experiment you just did applies to eyewitness testimony in court.

Answer rating: 100% (QA)

1 Find an Acquaintance Reach out to someone you know who is willing to participate in the experiment ... View the full answer