The Unclear Relationship Between Cognitive Ability and Eyewitness Recall Accuracy

In two experimental studies, we investigated the impact of perceptual load and two cognitive ability variables (working memory capacity and perceptual capacity) on eyewitness recall accuracy following exposure to post-event misinformation. In Study 1, participants (n = 384) viewed a simulated theft under high or low perceptual load, read a narrative containing misinformation, and completed recall questionnaires after a brief delay (>15 minutes) and a long delay (~one week). Perceptual load had no effect on recall accuracy. Working memory capacity and perceptual capacity had a small association with misinformation item accuracy after one week, despite this effect not being present after a short delay. Study 2 (n = 255) replicated Study 1 using different recall questions at each time point, but no significant effects were found. We discuss how these findings deviate from past research and consider the inconsistent findings regarding the relationship between cognitive ability and eyewitness misinformation susceptibility.