A direct comparison of children's recall of stressful and non-stressful events

In many criminal investigations, the testimony of a witness is critical to establishing that an illegal act occurred. Research on children’s event memory has largely been based on recall of neutral or positive experiences. Understanding the differences, if any, between memory for stressful events and neutral events is essential for interpreting children’s testimony. The present research explored the malleability of children’s memory for an instance of a repeated anxiety-provoking event. The basic event was private swimming lessons for beginners that, because of natural variation in children’s fear of the water, were experienced as stressful for some children and not stressful for others. In both the stressful and non-stressful conditions, children who experienced a single-lesson were more correct and less suggestible than children who experienced repeated-lessons. There was little evidence for a unique effect of anxiety on recall. Implications for children’s memory for stressful events and repeated-events are discussed.