Perceptual and memory distortion during officer-involved shootings - Research Forum

FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin,The, Oct, 2002 by Alexis Artwohl

PREVIOUS RESEARCH

To understand this connection more thoroughly, the author reviewed previous research relative to officer-involved shootings. In the process, she concentrated on three main studies.

In 1986, two researchers were among the first to publish data specific to officer-involved shootings. (7) In their study of 86 officers involved in shootings, they found that 67 percent of the officers saw the incident in slow motion, while 15 percent observed it as faster than normal. Fifty-one percent heard sounds during the event in a diminished manner, whereas 18 percent of the officers said that the sounds were intensified. Thirty-seven percent had tunnel vision, while 18 percent experienced greater visual detail.

In 1998, two other researchers studied a variety of reactions in 348 officers involved in shootings. (8) They administered their surveys within 3 to 5 days after the incident, just prior to each officer's participation in a mandatory debriefing. They found that 41 percent of the officers thought that time slowed down, while 20 percent perceived that it sped up. Fifty-one percent said that sounds seemed quieter, whereas 23 percent reported sounds as being louder. Forty-five percent of the officers had tunnel vision, while 41 percent experienced an increased attention to detail. In addition, 22 percent of the officers reported memory loss for part of the incident.

A recent researcher did a comprehensive survey of officer-involved shootings that consisted of detailed interviews with 80 municipal and county law enforcement officers who reported on 113 separate cases where they shot citizens during their careers in law enforcement. (9) While his report contained a wealth of information, it also set out specific data relative to perceptual and memory distortions. He found that 56 percent of the officers saw the incident in slow motion, while 23 percent thought that it happened quicker than normal. Eighty-two percent reported that sounds diminished, whereas 20 percent thought sounds intensified. Fifty-six percent experienced heightened visual detail, while 51 percent had tunnel vision. In addition, 13 percent of the officers reported other types of distortion during the event.

PRESENT RESEARCH

From 1994 to 1999, the author supplied a written survey to 157 officers involved in shootings from multiple agencies. Although approximately two-thirds of the officers received the survey during their individual mandatory debriefing within 1 week after the shooting, the author told them not to fill out the survey until they had attended a group debriefing (which typically occurs 2 to 4 weeks after the incident, allowing time for agencies to complete their investigations). The author did this because she discovered, in the course of conducting numerous group debriefings, that many officers do not fully realize the extent of their own memory and perceptual gaps and distortions until confronted with evidence to the contrary. During a group debriefing, as officers tell their versions of what happened, the complete picture begins to emerge. Participating officers enjoy the benefit of finding out what really happened overall and how their own version might differ. Even for officers who were the only officer present , their later perusal of investigation reports, including physical evidence and eyewitness statements, can educate them as to the lack of completeness and total accuracy of their memories of the event.