Memory and Law
CCJ 4934, MWF 6th, MAT 0016
3 credit hours
Spring 2016
Instructor:
Zoe Arthurson-McColl
zsarthur@ufl.edu
Turlington Hall room 3102
Office Hours: Wednesday 2pm – 4pm, Thursday 3pm – 4pm, and by appointment
Course Communications: Students may come to the scheduled office hours or email the
instructor with questions. If students are unable to make the scheduled office hours they
should email the instructor to ask for a meeting at a different time, suggesting at least two
times during the week that would work.
Required Text: The SAGE Handbook of Applied Memory (2014), Edited by Timothy J.
Perfect and D. Stephen Lindsay
Additional Resources: There will be some classes that require students to have read one
or more journal articles – in these cases, the full citation will be provided beforehand so
that students can find the required article(s) on their own.
Course Description: This course will focus on examining memory and law from a
psychological perspective. Specifically, we will examine psychological research on
memory with an emphasis on applications to issues in the law. Topics include memory
for people and objects, source-monitoring, influences on eyewitness memory,
interviewing witnesses, and false memory.
Purpose of Course: The purpose of this course is to go over the theory and research on
memory and their applications to the law and legal issues. We will address psychological
research on memory for different categories of subjects (e.g., people versus objects),
common misconceptions of memory, and psychological frameworks for understanding
memory processes as they are relevant to the legal system. Although the academic focus
of the course will be psychology-based, we will also focus on actual events/cases/stories
that highlight the issues we cover, such as the factors involved in and consequences of
mistaken eyewitness identifications.
Course Goals and/or Objectives: By the end of this course, students will:
1. Demonstrate the ability to compile and summarize information on a specific
area of the course material through high quality writing.
2. Have a sufficient knowledge of memory topics to be able to develop and
explain an informed opinion on how memory is relevant to different legal
issues and events.
3. Be able to understand the processes of research and knowledge generation in
memory and law, and consider various viewpoints/explanations for the
findings of memory research and how it applies to the law and legal research.
Reading/Assignment Schedule
Below is a tentative schedule for readings and assignments for the semester. All
assignments will be elaborated on, but this is so that you can know what to expect and
when. This provides you with a schedule for when you should have readings done, and
when assignments will be given and exams will be. I say “tentative” because there is
always a possibility that the week topics are covered could change, or that class has to be
cancelled, or something else happens that necessitates the changing of
topics/videos/exams/assignments. If any of this does change, I will let you know with as
much notice as possible. All other class policies (attendance, make-up exams, etc.) still
apply even if there are changes to the schedule.
Week 1: January 6 & 8
 January 6: syllabus and course overview
 January 8: memory basics (readings posted online)
Week 2: January 11, 13, & 15
 January 11: memory basics continued
o Assignment: thought paper 1
 January 13: Loftus TED talk
 January 15: chapter 1 (memory for people)
Week 3: January 20 & 22
 January 20: memory basics quiz
 January 22: chapter 2 (memories for pictures and actions)
Week 4: January 25, 27, & 29
 January 25 & 27: chapter 27 (metacognitive control of memory reporting)
o Possible additional readings posted online
 January 29: chapter 34 (social influences on eyewitness memory)
Week 5: February 1, 3, & 5
 February 1: chapter 34 (social influences on eyewitness memory)
o Possible additional readings posted online
 February 3: review for exam 1
 February 5: overview of term paper assignment
Week 6: February 8, 10, & 12
 February 8: exam 1 (chapters 1, 2, 27, & 34)
 February 10 & 12: chapter 4 (memory source monitoring applied)
o Possible additional readings posted online
Week 7: February 15, 17, & 19
 February 15: readings to be posted online
 February 17-19: documentary on the West Memphis 3
o Assignment: thought paper 2
Week 8: February 22, 24, & 26
 February 22 & 24: chapter 17 (memory for persons and groups)
 February 26: additional readings to be posted online
Week 7: March 7, 9, & 11
 March 7-9: chapter 9 (memory and emotion)
 March 11: no class
o Opportunity to hand in a polished first draft of term paper for feedback
(11:59pm)
Week 8: March 14, 16, & 18
 March 14 & 16: chapter 10 (effects of environmental context on memory)
 March 18: additional readings to be posted online
Week 9: March 21, 23, & 25
 March 21: review for exam 2
 March 23: exam 2 (chapters 1, 2, 27, 34, 4, 17, 9, & 10)
 March 25: chapter 6 (working memory beyond the lab)
Week 10: March 28 & 30, April 1
 March 28 & 30: chapter 31 (interviewing witnesses)
 April 1: additional readings to be posted online
Week 11: April 4, 6, & 8
 April 4 & 6: chapter 30 (eyewitness recall, an overview of estimator-based
research)
 April 8: chapter 33 (system based research on eyewitness identification
Week 12: April 11, 13, & 15
 April 11: video about the wrongful conviction of Ronald Cotton
o Assignment: thought paper 3
 April 13: chapter 7 (false memory)
 April 15: additional readings to be posted online
o Assignment: thought paper 4
Week 13: April 18 & 20
 April 18 & 20: review for final exam (chapters 1, 2, 27, 34, 4, 17, 9, 10, 31, 30,
33, & 7)
o April 20: term paper due on Canvas by the beginning of class
How You Will Earn Your Grade
Assignment
Points Toward Grade
Thought papers (4 total, 5 points each)
20
Memory basics quiz
10
Exam 1
30
Exam 2
30
Term paper
50
Final exam
60
Attendance/Participation
- 2 points per day absent after 5
absences
200
Total Points
Course Grades
Final grades will be assigned using the following scale:
Points Earned
186 – 200
180 – 185
174 – 184
166 – 173
160 – 165
154 – 159
146 – 153
140 – 145
134 – 139
126 – 133
120 – 125
119 or less
Grade
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
CD+
D
DE
Note: At the end of the semester, I will not round up or add points to change your final
grade.
Course Policies
Extra credit: There are no planned opportunities for students to earn extra credit.
Attendance Policy: attendance is required and will be taken at every class. Students are
permitted to miss up to 5 classes without penalty; notification of a missed class does not
need to be given to the instructor. Being absent from more than the permitted 5 classes
will result in a penalty against a student’s grade. Exceptions will be made only when
there are extenuating circumstances and the appropriate documentation is provided
Participation Policy: during class, students will be called on to answer questions about the
readings covered that day. If it is clear that a student has not read the material, then that
day will count as an absence for the student.
Make-up Policy: students will be permitted to make-up an exam only if notice is given at
least 48 hours in advance; the missed exam will count as an absent on the student’s
attendance, and failure to contact the instructor about the need for a makeup exam at least
48 hours in advance will result in the student receiving a zero on the exam. Makeup
exams will need to be scheduled within a week of the original exam date, and students
should be able to write the makeup exam during office hours or suggest at least 3 other
times when they would be able to do so.
Assignment Policy: all thought papers will be given in-class. All assignments must be
handed in, not emailed, at the beginning of class on the assigned due date. If, for any
reason, students are unable to print out their assignments in time, they must email their
assignments in before class begins and have until the end of that day to get the hard copy
to me. Late thought paper assignments will only be accepted when there are extenuating
circumstances and the appropriate documentation is provided. The requirements for
completing and handing in the final term paper are provided separately on the term paper
assignment.
Technology: the use of all technology (i.e., cell-phones, tablets, laptops) is prohibited in
class, unless otherwise specified by the instructor. Students violating this policy will be
asked to leave the class. Students with disabilities must provide the instructor with the
appropriate documentation if they require the use of technology in the classroom.
UF Policies:
University Policy on Accommodating Students with Disabilities: Students requesting
accommodation for disabilities must first register with the Dean of Students Office
(http://www.dso.ufl.edu/drc/). The Dean of Students Office will provide documentation
to the student who must then provide this documentation to the instructor when
requesting accommodation. You must submit this documentation prior to submitting
assignments or taking the quizzes or exams. Accommodations are not retroactive,
therefore, students should contact the office as soon as possible in the term for which they
are seeking accommodations.
University Policy on Academic Misconduct: Academic honesty and integrity are
fundamental values of the University community. Students should be sure that they
understand the UF Student Honor Code at http://www.dso.ufl.edu/students.php.
**Netiquette: Communication Courtesy: All members of the class are expected to follow
rules of common courtesy in all email messages, threaded discussions and chats.
[Describe what is expected and what will occur as a result of improper behavior –
http://teach.ufl.edu/docs/NetiquetteGuideforOnlineCourses.pdf
Getting Help:
For issues with technical difficulties for E-learning in Sakai, please contact the UF Help
Desk at:
● Learning-support@ufl.edu
● (352) 392-HELP - select option 2
● https://lss.at.ufl.edu/help.shtml
** Any requests for make-ups due to technical issues MUST be accompanied by the
ticket number received from LSS when the problem was reported to them. The ticket
number will document the time and date of the problem. You MUST e-mail your
instructor within 24 hours of the technical difficulty if you wish to request a make-up.
Other resources are available at http://www.distance.ufl.edu/getting-help for:
 Counseling and Wellness resources
 Disability resources
 Resources for handling student concerns and complaints
 Library Help Desk support
Should you have any complaints with your experience in this course please visit
http://www.distance.ufl.edu/student-complaints to submit a complaint.