Serial Position Effects in Children's Route Reversal Errors: Implications for Police Search Operations

Abstract

We illustrate how descriptions of way-finding behavior can be applied to the problem of searching for a lost child. We first establish a pattern of errors that children make when reversing a route. Eight- and 12-year-olds were escorted on a circular tour of a campus and then were asked to retrace the route from the end point to the beginning. Errors at intersections indicated that the original paths were more likely to be remembered at the beginning and end of the route than in the middle. Next, the obtained serial position effects were incorporated in an algorithm to estimate the probability that a child is within an area designated for search. The algorithm enhances the performance of a novice search manager in a simulation of an urban police search.