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hierarchy of expert performance as applied to forensic anthropology
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hierarchy of expert performance as applied to forensic anthropology

Stephanie Brianna Hartley
University of West Florida,
Master of Arts (MA), University of West Florida
2020

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Abstract

Science is thought to be trustworthy because it is objective. I argue that science is not purely objective, but rather a creative human activity that is comprised of subjective human thought including cognitive biases. Forensic anthropologists must be able to conduct their analyses with minimal compromise by human factors for the purpose of legal testimony. I assessed a large body of forensic anthropological research using Dror's (2016) Hierarchy of Expert Performance model to address the reliability and biasability of observers' analyses-- creating a forensic anthropology-specific model--and conducted an experiment to examine the biasability of metric sex assessments when being introduced to extraneous contexts. I expected that the participants would differ in both their observations and conclusions when exposed to extraneous biasing information. Using comparison (t-tests, Wilcoxon rank-sum tests), Standard Deviation, Scaled Error Index, and Inter-rater Reliability tests, I found the participants were not significantly affected by the extraneous information when analyzing individual skeletal material but were affected when concluding an overall sex estimation for the assemblage. My research has implications for the application of cognitive understandings within all forensic anthropology research: 1) aiding in further research regarding forensic anthropology assessments, 2) guiding expert testimony and 3) creating policies for better standardization of the field.
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