The '''Recency principle''' is described by the [[Roger Shuy]] in the journal [[Language Log]].<ref>http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/002928.html</ref>
It is used by police interrogators to have a subject incriminate himself without realizing it, and more importantly, without speaking further about the topic. It exploits a known phenomenon where people focus on the most recent topic.<ref name="Leonard2002">{{cite book|author=David C. Leonard|title=Learning theories, A to Z|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=HBZMrbPyy74C&pg=PA160|accessdate=4 February 2012|year=2002|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|isbn=978-1-57356-413-7|page=160}}</ref>{{Failed verification|date=May 2016}} By quickly shifting to an unrelated topic after something incriminating was said, the interrogator can avoid having to elaborate on the statement, and avoid protest from the subject.
