Tia Bennett
Thesis Title: Determining how UK policing should construct identification parades: Using diagnostic-feature-detection theory to maximise eyewitness identification accuracy
Identification parades (or 'lineups') are routinely administered by police forces globally to determine whether a witness identifies the police suspect as the perpetrator of a crime. During a parade, a witness views images of the suspect and others who resemble the suspect, called fillers. Worldwide, legal guidance on constructing parades uses the same central principle—the fillers should be plausible alternatives so that the parade is fair to the suspect (e.g., UK Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, Code D, 2017). Yet, even when constructing legally ‘fair’ parades, fillers can vary in similarity to the suspect. Currently, there is no evidence-based direction for identification officers on optimal filler similarity.
This research aims to determine how identification officers in the UK and internationally should select fillers, so that the parade is fair to the suspect (i.e., the suspect does not unduly stand out from the fillers), and maximises witness accuracy. It will do this by testing the newest psychological theory that makes predictions about the effect of filler similarity on witness accuracy—the diagnostic-feature-detection theory (Wixted & Mickes, 2014)—and by collaborating with the National VIPER® Bureau, the UK’s leading video identification service owned and managed by The Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for West Yorkshire.
Biography
Tia is an ESRC funded student currently completing a 1+3 programme. In 2020, Tia graduated with a BSc in Psychology at Aston University and completed an MA in Social Research at the University of Birmingham in 2021. She is currently completing a PhD in Psychology at the University of Birmingham with a specific focus on eyewitness memory and identification procedures. While undertaking her PhD, Tia has gained experience working as both a Research Assistant and a Teaching Assistant at the University of Birmingham. She is also a member of the UK-South Korea Eyewitness Network (https://www.ukskeyewitnessmemorynetwork.com/) which aims to improve eyewitness identification and interviewing techniques and create new networks to undertake multidisciplinary cross-cultural research.
Psychology
University of Birmingham
2021 Cohort 1+3
Supervisory Team
Dr Melissa Colloff
Professor Heather Flowe
Collaborator
The National VIPER Bureau