Karl
Thank you for the good example. I do understand what you are saying but I don't 
see the situations as very similar. (Perhaps my question was phrased 
unclearly). Here is the text from the task:
"Can you identify the bomber on the roof from the lineup?
Click on the number of the lineup member you identified."
Assuming my response to the first question was yes (it was), there is a direct 
and misleading implication to that instruction following that question- that I 
did, in fact, identify one of these as the bomber- I didn't think any of them 
even resembled what I remembered. I just showed this to some members of a class 
(in forensic psychology) who all responded, "It wasn't any of those. What do I 
do now?" (done individually not as a group). I suppose that some would go ahead 
and pick the closest match of those offered but this technique, as applied, 
would seem to me to eliminate the most plausible and correct response which is, 
"I don't recognize any of those six". 

I do see the point in the kind of choice example you provided. But, and this 
might be just me, I'd phrase the question, "Which of the following is more 
likely the case?" (But that may make it obvious that my research experience was 
primarily with rats but included hamsters, dogs, monkeys and apes- with a horse 
study thrown in). :)
Tim

-----Original Message-----
From: Wuensch, Karl L [mailto:[email protected]] 
Sent: Wednesday, September 22, 2010 10:44 AM
To: Teaching in the Psychological Sciences (TIPS)
Subject: RE: [tips] video of crime and line up

        Your subject has just watched a video of an apparently angry person.  
You ask the subject:  "Which of the following is true:
A:  He is just a hostile person.
B:  Most people would express anger in this situation."

        Psych researchers often force choices like this, not providing an 
option like "I'd suspend judgment until I knew more about him."

Cheers,
 
Karl W.

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