Stany and Johnson's "weapons focus" experiment, investigating memory for crime scenes, found that
A) the presence of a weapon enhances memory for all parts of the event.
B) the presence of a weapon has no effect on memory for the event.
C) the threat of a weapon causes people to focus their attention away from the weapon itself.
D) the presence of a weapon hinders memory for other parts of the event.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Stany and Johnson's "weapons focus" experiment found that the presence of a weapon hinders memory for other parts of the event. This is because people tend to focus their attention on the weapon itself, rather than other details of the crime scene. This phenomenon is known as the "weapon focus effect".

Stany and Johnson's "Weapons Focus" Experiment, Investigating Memory for Crime