A Synthetic Perspective on the Own-Race Bias in Eyewitness Identification

Abstract

Perceivers show worse memory for other-race than own-race faces. Much of the interest in this own-race bias (ORB) stems from the problems that it may introduce in eyewitness misidentification. Here we focus on extending our categorization-individuation model of the ORB. This model proposes that the ORB and other group-based memory biases result from co-acting factors: social categorization into ingroups and outgroups, greater motivation to individuate ingroup members, and greater individuation experience with ingroup than outgroup members. This model explains the social motivational origins of the ORB and makes novel predictions for how it can be reduced. After reviewing the extant literature, we make recommendations for reducing the ORB in eyewitness identification, both at the point of witnessing the crime and during the witness lineup. Our model indicates that reduction of the ORB through improvements in recognition sensitivity will occur through training specifically designed to encourage an individuation mindset. However, the model also indicates that the most effective interventions will occur before encoding, meaning that post-encoding interventions may only reduce the ORB by affecting decision criterion. Further, this perspective indicates that other own-race-like biases may emerge in eyewitness memory, meaning that memory distortions may be even more common than the ORB literature indicates. This model provides novel possibilities for interventions to reduce the ORB and its legal consequences, while also providing boundaries on where careful interventions are likely to be most effective. This chapter can inform the work of scholars and policymakers as they attempt to understand and reduce the ORB.