Can self-reported encoding strategy and recognition skill be diagnostic ofperformance in eyewitness identifications?

The relationship between 3 witness factors and identification accuracy, as well as calibration and diagnosticity of confidence, was investigated. A to tal of 384 participants in an eyewitness experiment rated their facial reco gnition skill, general memory skill, and self-reported encoding strategy on a questionnaire presented after the photo-confrontation. Participants who rated themselves to be good face recognizers showed a slightly higher overa ll accuracy with a more diagnostic confidence-accuracy relation. Participan ts who reported that they relied on a holistic encoding strategy were assoc iated with more accurate identifications and a stronger confidence-accuracy relation than those who reported an analytic encoding strategy. Degree of self-reported general memory skill was not diagnostic of identification per formance.