The Influence of Scene and Object Manipulation on the Weapon Focus Effect

Abstract

The present experiment investigates the influence of scene and object manipulation on the weapon focus effect (WFE). The manipulation of the object was used to determine if threat and unusualness had any effect in eliciting the WFE. Literature on WFE lacks acknowledgment for the effect of scene complexity and duration. The current study included both these variables to determine the nature of WFE. In the experiment, participant's watched videos depicting a conversation between two male actors in the setting of a staff room. Participants were then required to complete cue recall and recognition questions on details of the scene. Once this was complete, they were tested on the target identification. The results revealed a non significant effect for threat and unusualness for memory recall, but found significance for duration and scene complexity.