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Summary : ' A True Presupposition '

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Psyc 4400: Homework #1
a. What is the overall purpose or goal of this paper? Overall, Elizabeth Loftus wanted to see how differently worded questions (containing either true or false presuppositions) asked directly after an event influence the witnesses’ responses when asked at a later date. Loftus’ concern wasn’t on the effect of how a question was worded, but on the answers to subsequent questions
b. Study specifics
i. Experiment 1
1. Research Question- Does the wording of a true presupposition (which either does or does not get mentioned) into an initial question influence answers to questions asked at a later date?
2. Method Summary (important info only) - Students (150) were shown a video of a multiple-car accident due to one car not stopping at a stop sign and making a right turn into the main traffic. The video is less than one minute long and the multiple-car accident happens in a period of four seconds. Afterwards, the students are given a ten item questionnaire with a diagram labeling the scene. Questions asked are either about how fast the car was going when it ran the stop sign or when it turned right. Seventy-five received the stop sign question and seventy-five received the turned right question, the last question was neutral.
3. Summary of important results- Fifty-three percent students who received the stop sign question responded yes to if they saw a stop sign. Thirty-five percent students who received the turn right question said they saw a stop sign.

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