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Abstract

Previous research has found a strong and positive relationship between an individual's degree of self-monitoring and his or her memory for information about an observed other. In the present study this self-monitoring-memory correlation was undermined by subsequently exposing subjects to leading questions. This reduced self-monitoring-memory correlation resulted from the greater susceptibility of high- (relative to low-) self-monitoring individuals to the leading questions. Additional data indicated that the memorial advantage of high self-monitoring may be limited to specific kinds of information. It is concluded that high-self-monitoring individuals may make better eyewitnesses than low-self-monitoring individuals only under certain conditions.

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Effect of Leading Questions on the Self-Monitoring-Memory Correlation

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