Differences of FN400 and LPC between Witnessed and Non-witnessed Stimuli when Presented in the Form of Sentences

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the effects of witnessing an event on recognition-related ERP components (FN400 & LPC) when the stimuli are presented in the form of sentences in a recognition task. The subjects were shown a video that re-enacted an eyewitness account of a crime scene, then were presented with sentences describing what the perpetrator was wearing. ERP analysis revealed that the early old-new effect was present across right-frontal regions surrounding FC4 and Fz electrodes when the irrelevant and target stimuli were compared. However, the same effect was not observed between the target and lure stimuli. Moreover, the late old-new effect was present across right and mid-parietal regions surrounding CP4 and Pz electrodes when the irrelevant and lure stimuli were compared to the target stimuli. Such results suggest that sentences can be used to present stimuli within the eyewitness-memory evaluation protocol, and by doing so contribute to the increasing utilization of scientific evidence under investigative circumstances.