University of Warwick
Many people are prone to 'remembering' events that never
happened, according to new research by the University of Warwick.
In a study on false memories, Dr Kimberley Wade in the
Department of Psychology demonstrates that if we are told about a completely
fictitious event from our lives, and repeatedly imagine that event occurring,
almost half of us would accept that it did.
Over 400 participants in 'memory implantation' studies had fictitious autobiographical events suggested to them -- and it was found that around 50% of the participants believed, to some degree, that they had experienced those events.
Participants in these studies came to remember a range of false
events, such as taking a childhood hot air balloon ride, playing a prank on a
teacher, or creating havoc at a family wedding.
30% of participants appeared to 'remember' the event -- they
accepted the suggested event, elaborated on how the event occurred, and even
described images of what the event was like.
Another 23% showed signs that they
accepted the suggested event to some degree and believed it really happened.
Dr Wade and colleagues conclude that it can be very difficult to
determine when a person is recollecting actual past events, as opposed to false
memories -- even in a controlled research environment; and more so in real life
situations.
These findings have significance in many areas -- raising
questions around the authenticity of memories used in forensic investigations,
court rooms, and therapy treatments.
Moreover, the collective memories of a large group of people or
society could be incorrect -- due to misinformation in the news, for example --
having a striking effect on people's perceptions and behaviour.
Dr Wade comments on the importance of this study: "We know
that many factors affect the creation of false beliefs and memories -- such as
asking a person to repeatedly imagine a fake event or to view photos to
"jog" their memory. But we don't fully understand how all these
factors interact. Large-scale studies like our mega-analysis move us a little
bit closer.
"The finding that a large portion of people are prone to
developing false beliefs is important. We know from other research that
distorted beliefs can influence people's behaviours, intentions and
attitudes."
Scientists have been using variations of this procedure for 20
years to study how people can come to remember wholly false experiences.