Remembering rape: Police interview procedures and complainant meta-memory processes during police interviews

目前涉及报告性侵犯的程序要求受害者多次向法医专业人员起诉。这一过程令人痛苦，并可能导致受害者再次受到创伤，因为他们对犯罪的回忆及其准确性经常受到挑战（Antaki等人，2015）。受害者将这一过程比作“第二次”强奸（例如，Lees，1993; McMillan &托马斯，2009）。此外，法律的专业人员的轻蔑、不支持和质疑的反应可能对受害者的康复产生有害影响（例如，Ullman & Peter-Hagene，2014），并不利于他们的记忆回忆。我们的项目伙伴，圣玛丽性侵犯转介中心，为遭受性侵犯的个人提供法医、咨询和善后服务。我们将与SARC合作，以获得宝贵的洞察力从业者的采访，受害者的过程中的经验，以及在调查犯罪中出现的法律的和操作上的挑战的看法。利用这些知识，我们将借鉴战略元记忆过程理论-该理论预测强奸投诉人自愿提供的信息取决于他们对信息正确性的确定性-（例如，金匠，Koriat，& Panksy，2005）开发和测试一个新的心理学理论关于元记忆过程中的采访，重点是防止受害者的再创伤。以前的研究认为，目击者的元记忆表现很差，信心是准确性的一个很差的指标（Wixted &威尔斯，2017）。然而，最近的研究描绘了一幅更积极的画面，表明信心是目击者记忆表现的可靠指标，即使在记忆强度较低的情况下（例如，Colloff，Wade，Wixted，& Maylor，2017; Flowe et al.，2017年）。策略记忆过程理论预测，当记忆编码较弱时，当他们的陈述的可信性受到挑战时，个体会降低信息量，并且对高标准指令下的陈述不太自信。在4个实验中，我们的项目将回答以下问题：（1）受害者在警察面谈期间多久经历一次关于记忆准确性的挑战，以及这如何影响他们参与面谈和法律的过程？(2)法律的从业人员如何评价警方面谈中投诉人陈述的准确性和可靠性？(3)记忆强度和报告标准的设置如何影响访谈过程中披露的信息的准确性和可靠性？(4)元记忆过程和记忆准确性如何受到当前用于采访投诉人的程序的影响？通过我们与SARC的合作，将对法医从业人员和性侵犯受害者进行访谈，以更好地了解受害者接受访谈的背景以及这如何影响他们的记忆报告。然后，使用“参与者选择范例”，我们将开发一个互动约会场景，并使用标准的两阶段警察协议采访参与者。将使用指令来操纵参与者的记忆报告标准（高标准、低标准和当前警察指令）。在一项研究中，我们将通过操纵情景编码和访谈之间的保持间隔来改变记忆强度，在另一项研究中，我们将改变参与者是否被质疑其自由回忆账户的准确性。准确性将通过确定访谈期间报告的正确和不正确细节的数量来衡量，信心将通过（不）确定性的表达来收集。该项目将有助于研究警察面谈期间申诉人的元记忆过程，以及如何通过实施创伤知情协议更好地进行这些面谈，以确保防止再次创伤。

The current processes involved in reporting a sexual assault requires victims to recollect the offense multiple times to medicolegal professionals. This process is distressing and can contribute to victim re-traumatisation, as their recollections of the offense and their accuracy are often challenged (Antaki et al, 2015). Victims have likened the process to a 'second' rape (e.g., Lees, 1993; McMillan & Thomas, 2009). Additionally, dismissive, non-supportive and challenging responses from legal professionals can be deleterious effects to victims' recovery (e.g., Ullman & Peter-Hagene, 2014), and be detrimental to their memory recall. Our project partner, Saint Mary's Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC), provides forensic, counselling and aftercare services to individuals who have been sexually violated. We will collaborate with SARC to gain invaluable insight into practitioner's perceptions of interviews, victims experiences of the process, and the legal and operational challenges that arise in investigating offenses. Using this knowledge, we will then draw on strategic meta-memory process theory - which predicts information volunteered by rape complainants depends on their certainty that the information is correct - (e.g., Goldsmith, Koriat, & Panksy, 2005) to develop and test a new psychological theory about meta-memory processes during interviews, with a focus on the prevention of re-traumatisation of victims. Previous research has argued that eyewitness meta-memory performance is poor, and that confidence is a poor indicator of accuracy (Wixted & Wells, 2017). However, recent research paints a more positive picture in showing that confidence is a reliable indicator of eyewitness memory performance, even when memory strength is low (e.g., Colloff, Wade, Wixted, & Maylor, 2017; Flowe et al., 2017). Strategic memorial process theories predict that when memory encoding is weak, and when the plausibility of their account is challenged individuals will decrease the informativeness and be less confident of their statements under high criterion instructions. Across 4 experiments, our project will answer the following questions: (1) How often do victims experience challenges regarding the accuracy of their memory during police interviews, and how does this affect their engagement with the interview and legal process? (2) How do legal practitioners evaluate the accuracy and reliability of complainant statements during police interviews? (3) How does memory strength and report criterion placement affect the accuracy and reliability of information disclosed over the course of the interview? (4) How are meta-memory processes and memory accuracy affected by the current procedures that are used to interview complainants? Through our collaboration with SARC, interviews with medicolegal practitioners and victims of sexual assault will be conducted to better understand the context in which victims are interviewed and how this affects their memory reporting. Then, using the 'participants choice paradigm', we will develop an interactive dating scenario and interview participants using a standard two-phase police protocol. Instructions will be used to manipulate participant's memory report criterion (high criterion, low criterion, and current police instructions). We will vary memory strength by manipulating the retention interval between scenario encoding and the interview in one study and vary whether the participant is challenged about the accuracy of their free recall account in another. Accuracy will be measured by determining the number of correct and incorrect details reported during the interview, and confidence will be collected through expressions of (un)certainty. This project will contribute to research on complainant meta-memory processes during police interviews, and how these interviews can be better conducted through the implementation of trauma--informed protocols to ensure the prevention of re-traumatisation.