Virtual environments and avatars appear suitable for improving the quality of witness statements.

This emerges from a study by researchers at the University of Westminster .

Accordingly, subjects who were interviewed from avatar to avatar instead of face to face remembered up to 60 percent more information about an alleged car theft.

People obviously find it easier to talk to a virtual avatar.

No stress from questioning

Being questioned by a police officer can be stressful for eyewitnesses. This is partly because it is a conversation with a human being.

“Witnesses can be distracted from the task of remembering during the conversation because they react to the interviewer’s social behavior such as facial expressions,”

explains Coral Dando, psychology professor at the University of Westminster. She therefore wanted to clarify whether an interview in a virtual environment could be advantageous because there are fewer distractions and a witness can therefore concentrate more on what has been remembered.

In a test with 38 young adults, Dando's team told them they were testing a new headset. The test subjects first observed an alleged car theft. 40 hours later, they were supposed to report what they saw - either in person or in a virtual environment that mimics the real interview room.

The environment played no role in free recall. But when it came to specific questions, test subjects interviewed from avatar to avatar were able to provide additional information and were significantly less likely to make mistakes. In addition, those surveyed virtually were more likely to admit when they simply didn't know something.

Real advantages of virtual worlds

Of course, the experiment described in “Frontiers in Psychology” only provided initial laboratory results. It remains to be clarified whether avatar witness interviews are also suitable for diverse and more complex scenarios.

But Dando, who spent twelve years in the police force before studying for a doctorate, hopes that the work will stimulate discussion about the use of such technologies in police work. After all, this could bring many advantages.

“Virtual environments allow surveys to be conducted quickly and remotely – and, as our work suggests, more effectively,”

emphasizes the psychologist.


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