ITR: Virtual Environment Technology and Eyewitness Identification

这个项目探讨了使用沉浸式虚拟环境技术来识别犯罪嫌疑人。这项技术允许个人实时进入三维数字“世界”并在其中移动，观察环境并与其中的虚拟他人互动。沉浸式虚拟环境技术的快速发展和人的三维数字成像技术的日益成熟，预示着证人识别犯罪嫌疑人的准确性将进入一个新的时代。这在社会上是重要的，因为使用旧技术（例如，警察列队，面部照片）的目击者识别犯罪嫌疑人的一般准确性在研究文献和司法系统中受到质疑。该项目的科学目标有三个方面。首先，研究人员将确定在沉浸式虚拟环境中使用人类数字表示进行人物识别的有效性。其次，他们将确定传统和沉浸式虚拟警察阵容在目击者识别准确性方面的差异，重点关注上述增加的情境真实感。最后，调查人员将利用沉浸式虚拟环境技术，基于嫌疑人与挫败者的相似性，开发出这种阵容公平性的定量指标。沉浸式虚拟环境技术可以更容易地再现目击证人观看涉及嫌疑人的犯罪活动的相同环境条件。使用旧技术很难复制这样的条件。因此，使用沉浸式虚拟环境技术，可以要求证人在相同的距离、视角、照明、天气（如雨、雾）下识别嫌疑人和陪衬，就像他们观察犯罪活动时一样。此外，这项技术可以更容易地根据有机变量（例如，身高、体重、发型、颜色）、衣服和动作来匹配箔片，从而消除潜在的偏见来源。这项技术还允许对嫌疑犯和嫌疑人的匹配程度进行定量评估，而不是使用旧技术进行纯粹的主观评估。

This project examines the use of immersive virtual environment technology for eyewitness identification of criminal suspects. This technology allows individuals to enter and move about three-dimensional digital "worlds" in real-time, observing and interacting with the environment and virtual others within it. The rapid development of immersive virtual environment technology and increased sophistication in three-dimensional digital imaging of people promises a new age for determining accuracy of eyewitness identification of criminal suspects. This is important societally as the general accuracy of eyewitness identification of criminal suspects using older technologies (e.g., police lineups, mug shots) has been questioned in the research literature as well as in the judicial system. The scientific goals of the project are threefold. First, the investigators will determine the validity of using digital representations of humans within immersive virtual environments for person recognition. Second, they will determine differences between traditional and immersive virtual police lineups in terms of eyewitness identification accuracy focusing on the increased contextual realism described above. Finally, the investigators will use immersive virtual environment technology to develop quantitative indexes of fairness of such lineups based on the similarity of suspects to foils.Immersive virtual environment technology allows easier recreation of the same environmental conditions under which an eyewitness viewed criminal activity involving suspects. Replicating such conditions is not easily accomplished using older technologies. Hence, using immersive virtual environment technology, witnesses can be asked to identify suspects and foils at the same distance, viewing angle, lighting, weather (e.g., rain, fog) as was the case during their observation of the criminal activity. Furthermore, this technology makes it easier to match foils to suspects in terms of organismic variables (e.g., height, weight, hair style, coloring), clothing, and movements thereby eliminating potential sources of bias. This technology also allows the quantitative assessment of how well suspects and foils are matched as opposed to pure subjective assessment using older technologies.