Child Memory Study

For 10- to 15-year-olds

This study will take place on two days, on two different zoom video calls. The first one called "Pre-Study Survey" is just with you (the adult), and the second one will be with both you and your child. Clicking on the “Schedule a time to participate” button will send you to a website where you will find out more information on the study and join the study. Once you've completed the consent form, you can select a date and time that works for you for the first call (just with you, not with your child). During that session, we will ask you to use family photographs already on your phone/computer (or other documentation that contain event dates) to help you identify four past events that your child experienced, and describe the event by answering simple questions. On the second session called the "Researcher-Child Interview", the researcher will speak with your child and ask them about the past events to see what they remember about the event.

The purpose of the study is to learn about children’s memory and create a knowledge base directly useful to interviewers and legal practitioners. Information about how accurate children of different ages are when remembering past events, how this may change across childhood (early childhood, middle to late childhood and into adolescence), and whether patterns vary for different types of event details. For example, it is possible that young children are accurate at some types of event details more than others, and legal practitioners should not discount all their testimony just because they are young.

Part 1 - 60 minutes; Part 2 - 60 Minutes

Upon participation in Part 2 “Researcher-Child Interview” (ZOOM session), you will receive a "Junior Scientist" certificate with your child's first name via email. Additionally, you will also receive one $30 CAD e-gift card within 3 business days after the “Researcher-Child Interview”. (If you have multiple children that would like to take part in the study, each child will receive their own certificate and e-gift card). Families living in Canada select between a gift card to Indigo or Amazon. Families in USA will receive an Amazon gift card (funds converted to USD, so gift card will be approximately $21). Families will also be entered into a drawing for a 200 CAD gift card. Note that only eligible participants (child in age range; video turned on at beginning of session to show a child) will receive compensation.