Jump to content

Memory implantation: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous edit
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
m Journal cites, Added 2 dois to journal cites using AWB (10365)
No edit summary
Tags: Visual edit Mobile edit Mobile web edit
 
(43 intermediate revisions by 28 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
'''Memory implantation''' is a technique used in [[cognitive psychology]] to investigate human [[memory]]. In memory implantation studies researchers make people believe that they remember an event that actually never happened. The false memories that have been successfully implanted in people’s memories include remembering being lost in a mall as a child, taking a hot air balloon ride, and putting slime in a teacher’s desk in primary school.<ref name=Loftus>{{cite journal|last=Loftus|first=Elizabeth F|author2=Pickrell, Jacqueline E|title=The Formation of False Memories|journal=Psychiatric Annals|date=December 1995|volume=25|issue=12|pages=720–725}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Wade|first=Kimberley A|author2=Garry, Maryanne |author3=Read, J. Don |author4= Lindsay, Stephen |title=A picture is worth a thousand lies: Using false photographs to create false childhood memories|journal=Psychonomic Bulletin & Review|date=September 2002|volume=9|issue=3|pages=597–603|doi=10.3758/BF03196318}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Lindsay|first=D.S|author2=Hagen, L. |author3=Read, J.D. |author4=Wade, K.A. |author5=Garry, M. |title=True photographs and false memories|journal=Psychological Science|year=2004|volume=15|pages=149–154|doi=10.1111/j.0956-7976.2004.01503002.x|pmid=15016285|issue=3}}</ref> Memory implantation techniques were developed in the 1990s as a way of providing evidence of how easy it is to distort people's memories of past events. Most of the studies on memory implantation were published in the context of the debate about [[repressed memories]] and the possible danger of digging for lost memories in [[recovered memory therapy|therapy]]. The successful implantation of memories in people’s minds has implications for therapy and legal settings.
'''Memory implantation''' is a technique used in [[cognitive psychology]] to investigate human [[memory]]. In memory implantation studies researchers make people believe that they remember an event that actually never happened. The [[false memories]] that have been successfully implanted in people's memories include remembering being lost in a mall as a child, taking a hot air balloon ride, among other things which could be both good or bad.<ref name=Loftus>{{cite journal|last=Loftus|first=Elizabeth F|author2=Pickrell, Jacqueline E|title=The Formation of False Memories|journal=Psychiatric Annals|date=December 1995|volume=25|issue=12|pages=720–725|doi=10.3928/0048-5713-19951201-07|s2cid=59286093 |url=https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/d526/2b894abffcb2bd5389c06af018799b82a118.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200227040232/https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/d526/2b894abffcb2bd5389c06af018799b82a118.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=2020-02-27}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Wade|first=Kimberley A|author2=Garry, Maryanne |author3=Read, J. Don |author4= Lindsay, Stephen |title=A picture is worth a thousand lies: Using false photographs to create false childhood memories|journal=Psychonomic Bulletin & Review|date=September 2002|volume=9|issue=3|pages=597–603|doi=10.3758/BF03196318|pmid=12412902|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Lindsay|first=D.S|author2=Hagen, L. |author3=Read, J.D. |author4=Wade, K.A. |author5=Garry, M. |title=True photographs and false memories|journal=Psychological Science|year=2004|volume=15|pages=149–154|doi=10.1111/j.0956-7976.2004.01503002.x|pmid=15016285|issue=3|s2cid=18977129 }}</ref>
Memory implantation techniques were developed in the 1990s as a way of providing evidence of how easy it is to distort people's memories of past events. Most of the studies on memory implantation were published in the context of the debate about [[repressed memories]] and the possible danger of digging for lost memories in [[recovered memory therapy|therapy]]. The successful implantation of memories in people's minds has implications for therapy and legal settings.


== Successful memory implantation ==
== Successful memory implantation ==


=== Published studies ===
=== Published studies ===
The first formal studies using memory implantation were published in the early 1990s, the most famous being "The Formation of False Memories" (commonly referred to as the [[lost in the mall technique|"Lost in the Mall"]] study) by [[Elizabeth Loftus|Loftus]] and Pickrell.<ref name=Loftus/> The basic technique used in this study involved asking family members of a participant to provide narratives of events that happened when they were young and then add another event that definitely had not happened. The participants saw these four narratives and were told to try to remember as much as possible about each event. Across a number of studies using memory implantation, about 37% of people have come to remember parts of or entire events that never actually happened.<ref name="wade and garry">{{cite journal|last=Wade|first=Kimberly A.|author2=Garry, Maryanne|title=Strategies for verifying false autobiographical memories|journal=The American Journal of Psychology|year=2005|volume=118|issue=4|pages=587–602}}</ref>
The first formal studies using memory implantation were published in the early 1990s, the most famous being "The Formation of False Memories" (commonly referred to as the [[lost in the mall technique|"Lost in the Mall"]] study) by [[Elizabeth Loftus|Loftus]] and Pickrell.<ref name=Loftus/> The basic technique used in this study involved asking family members of a participant to provide narratives of events that happened when they were young and then add another event that definitely had not happened. The participants saw these four narratives and were told to try to remember as much as possible about each event. Across a number of studies using memory implantation, about 37% of people have come to remember parts of or entire events that never actually happened.<ref name="wade and garry">{{cite journal|last=Wade|first=Kimberly A.|author2=Garry, Maryanne|title=Strategies for verifying false autobiographical memories|journal=The American Journal of Psychology|year=2005|volume=118|issue=4|pages=587–602|doi=10.2307/30039087 |jstor=30039087 |pmid=16402747|s2cid=40151384 }}</ref>


Other studies have expanded on this paradigm by introducing photos instead of narratives. Wade and colleagues found that 50% of people came to remember details of a hot air balloon ride that never happened, after seeing a manipulated photo depicting the event.<ref name="air baloon">{{cite journal|last=Wade|first=K.A.|author2=Garry, M. |author3=Read, J.D. |author4=Lindsay, D.S. |title=A picture is worth a thousand lies: Using false photographs to create false childhood memories.|journal=Psychonomic Bulletin & Review|year=2002|volume=9|pages=597–603|doi=10.3758/BF03196318}}</ref> Later it has been argued that photos by themselves do not produce more false memories than narratives, but that both methods have the power to successfully implant false memories.<ref name="picture less than words">{{cite journal|last=Garry|first=Maryanne|author2=Wade, Kimberly A.|title=Actually, a picture is worth less than 45 words: Narratives produce more false memories than photographs do|journal=Psychonomic Bulletin & Review|year=2005|volume=12|issue=2|pages=359–366|doi=10.3758/bf03196385}}</ref> Real photos have also been found to increase the creation of false memories. In a study by Lindsay and colleagues people were shown a childhood photo from the same time period as the false event. Seeing the photo resulted in more false memories, even when the photos did not depict the actual event.<ref name=slime>{{cite journal|last=Lindsay|first=D.S.|author2=Hagen, L. |author3=Read, J.D. |author4=Wade, K.A. |author5=Garry, M. |title=True photographs and false memories.|journal=Psychological Science|year=2004|volume=15|pages=149–154|doi=10.1111/j.0956-7976.2004.01503002.x|pmid=15016285}}</ref>
Other studies have expanded on this paradigm by introducing photos instead of narratives. Wade and colleagues found that 50% of people came to remember details of a hot air balloon ride that never happened, after seeing a manipulated photo depicting the event.<ref name="air baloon">{{cite journal|last=Wade|first=K.A.|author2=Garry, M. |author3=Read, J.D. |author4=Lindsay, D.S. |title=A picture is worth a thousand lies: Using false photographs to create false childhood memories.|journal=Psychonomic Bulletin & Review|year=2002|volume=9|issue=3|pages=597–603|doi=10.3758/BF03196318|pmid=12412902|doi-access=free}}</ref> Later it has been argued that photos by themselves do not produce more false memories than narratives, but that both methods have the power to successfully implant false memories.<ref name="picture less than words">{{cite journal|last=Garry|first=Maryanne|author2=Wade, Kimberly A.|title=Actually, a picture is worth less than 45 words: Narratives produce more false memories than photographs do|journal=Psychonomic Bulletin & Review|year=2005|volume=12|issue=2|pages=359–366|doi=10.3758/bf03196385|pmid=16082819|doi-access=free}}</ref> Real photos have also been found to increase the creation of false memories. In a study by Lindsay and colleagues people were shown a childhood photo from the same time period as the false event. Seeing the photo resulted in more false memories, even when the photos did not depict the actual event.<ref name=slime>{{cite journal|last=Lindsay|first=D.S.|author2=Hagen, L. |author3=Read, J.D. |author4=Wade, K.A. |author5=Garry, M. |title=True photographs and false memories.|journal=Psychological Science|year=2004|volume=15|pages=149–154|doi=10.1111/j.0956-7976.2004.01503002.x|pmid=15016285 |issue=3|s2cid=18977129 }}</ref>


In a study with children 1999 Pezdek and Hodge found that it was easier to implant a memory of a plausible event (being lost in a mall) than an implausible one (receiving a rectal enema).<ref>Pezdek, K. and Hodge, D. (1999), Planting False Childhood Memories in Children: The Role of Event Plausibility. ''Child Development'', 70: 887–895. {{DOI|10.1111/1467-8624.00064}}</ref> Later follow up studies, however, show that the perceived plausibility of a false event can be changed, making the false event easier to implant.<ref>Pezdek, K., Blandon-Gitlin, I., Lam, S., Rhiannon, E. H., & Schooler, J. W. (2006). Is knowing believing? the role of event plausibility and background knowledge in planting false beliefs about the personal past. Memory & Cognition (Pre-2011), 34(8), 1628-35. http://search.proquest.com/docview/217453426?accountid=14782</ref><ref name= Mazzoni>Mazzoni, G. A. L., Loftus, E. F., & Kirsch, I. (2001). Changing beliefs about implausible autobiographical events: A little plausibility goes a long way. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied, 7(1), 51-59. {{DOI|10.1037/1076-898X.7.1.51}}</ref> Taken together, these findings show that there are many factors that are important for the way people remember events.
In a study with children 1999 Pezdek and Hodge found that it was easier to implant a memory of a plausible event (being lost in a mall) than an implausible one (receiving a rectal enema).<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Pezdek | first1 = K. | last2 = Hodge | first2 = D. | year = 1999 | title = Planting False Childhood Memories in Children: The Role of Event Plausibility | journal = Child Development | volume = 70 | issue = 4| pages = 887–895 | doi = 10.1111/1467-8624.00064 }}</ref> Later follow up studies, however, show that the perceived plausibility of a false event can be changed, making the false event easier to implant.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Pezdek |first1=Kathy |last2=Blandon-Gitlin |first2=Iris |last3=Lam |first3=Shirley |last4=Hart |first4=Rhiannon Ellis |last5=Schooler |first5=Jonathan W. |title=Is knowing believing? The role of event plausibility and background knowledge in planting false beliefs about the personal past |journal=Memory & Cognition |date=December 2006 |volume=34 |issue=8 |pages=1628–1635 |id={{ProQuest|217453426}} |doi=10.3758/BF03195925 |pmid=17489289 |s2cid=20426384 }}</ref><ref name= Mazzoni>{{cite journal | last1 = Mazzoni | first1 = G. A. L. | last2 = Loftus | first2 = E. F. | last3 = Kirsch | first3 = I. | year = 2001 | title = Changing beliefs about implausible autobiographical events: A little plausibility goes a long way | journal = Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied | volume = 7 | issue = 1| pages = 51–59 | doi = 10.1037/1076-898X.7.1.51 | pmid = 11577619 }}</ref> Taken together, these findings show that there are many factors that are important for the way people remember events.


Mazzoni et al. also suggest a 3 processes model for the development of false memories through suggestions.<ref name="Mazzoni"/> The first process is to make people perceive the event as plausible, the second is to make people believe it is likely to have happened to them and the third step is to help people interpret thoughts and fantasies about the event as memories. Other factors influencing the likelihood of producing false memories include [[imagination inflation|imagining]] the events and making a [[source-monitoring error]], specifically reality monitoring.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Hyman|first=IE|author2=Billings, FJ|title=Individual differences and the creation of false childhood memories|journal=MEMORY|year=1998|volume=6|issue=1|pages=1–20|doi=10.1080/741941598}}</ref>
Mazzoni also suggest a model for the development of false memories through suggestions which model includes 3 processes.<ref name="Mazzoni"/> The first process is to make people perceive the event as plausible, the second is to make people believe it is likely to have happened to them and the third step is to help people interpret thoughts and fantasies about the event as memories. Other factors influencing the likelihood of producing false memories include [[imagination inflation|imagining]] the events and making a [[source-monitoring error]], specifically reality monitoring.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hyman |first1=Ira E. |last2=James Billings |first2=F. |title=Individual Differences and the Creation of False Childhood Memories |journal=Memory |date=January 1998 |volume=6 |issue=1 |pages=1–20 |doi=10.1080/741941598 |pmid=9640430 }}</ref>


=== Legal case ===
=== Legal case ===
A real life example of memory implantation occurred during the criminal case against [[Thurston county ritual abuse case|Paul Ingram]]. Ingram was accused by his daughters of recurring sexual abuse in their childhood. Ingram denied all allegations at first but after being interviewed by police and therapists he came to remember multiple instances of abuse. Psychologist [[Richard Ofshe]] considered this confession a result of suggestive questioning and decided to test his theory. He told Ingram about a made-up scenario and said it was another accusation made by his children. Ofshe asked Ingram to try and remember as much as possible about this new event. Ingram could not recall anything straight away but after thinking about it for some time came up with a written confession where he described in detail what had happened. His children confirmed to Ofshe that the event had never actually happened, Ingram had created an entirely false memory of an event after suggestions from Ofshe. Richard Ofshe considered this successful memory implantation evidence of Paul Ingram’s suggestibility and in his opinion it questions the accuracy of Ingram's other confessions.<ref name=Ofshe>{{cite journal|last=Ofshe|first=Richard J.|title=Inadvertent Hypnosis During Interrogation: False Confession Due to Dissociative State; Mis-Identified Multiple Personality and the Satanic Cult Hypothesis|journal=International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis|year=1992|volume=40|issue=3|pages=125–156|doi=10.1080/00207149208409653|pmid=1399152}}</ref> Whether or not example is generalizable to other legal cases involving recovered memories of sexual abuse it does show how important it is to have corroborative evidence even in cases where the suspect confesses.
A real life example of memory implantation occurred during the criminal case against [[Thurston county ritual abuse case|Paul Ingram]]. Ingram was accused by his daughters of recurring sexual abuse in their childhood. Ingram denied all allegations at first but after being interviewed by police and therapists he came to remember multiple instances of abuse.
Sociologist [[Richard Ofshe]] considered this confession a result of suggestive questioning and decided to test his theory. He told Ingram about a made-up scenario and said it was another accusation made by his children. Ofshe asked Ingram to try and remember as much as possible about this new event. Ingram could not recall anything straight away but after thinking about it for some time came up with a written confession where he described in detail what had happened. His children confirmed to Ofshe that the event had never actually happened; Ingram had created an entirely [[false memory]] of an event after suggestions from Ofshe. Ofshe considered this successful memory implantation evidence of Paul Ingram's suggestibility and in his opinion it questions the accuracy of Ingram's other confessions.<ref name=Ofshe>{{cite journal|last=Ofshe|first=Richard J.|title=Inadvertent Hypnosis During Interrogation: False Confession Due to Dissociative State; Mis-Identified Multiple Personality and the Satanic Cult Hypothesis|journal=International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis|year=1992|volume=40|issue=3|pages=125–156|doi=10.1080/00207149208409653|pmid=1399152}}</ref>


== Implications ==
== Implications ==
The methods used in memory implantation studies are meant to mimic those used by some therapists to [[recovered memory therapy|recover]] [[repressed memories]] of childhood events .<ref name="wade and garry"/> The high rate of people "remembering" false events shows that memories cannot always be taken at face value. Being told to go home and look at old photos to jog your memory can help you remember real events, but paired with suggestions from a therapist it might also lead to false memories. Memory implantation studies are also similar to recovered memory therapy in the way that they involve an authoritative figure claiming to know that the event actually happened and applying pressure on the participant/patient to remember.<ref name="wade and garry"/> Memory implantation techniques in general also illustrate how people can relatively easily come to remember things that actually never happened. This poses a big problem for criminal confessions resulting from suggestive questioning by police and others and also for the accuracy associated with [[eyewitness memory]]. It has been argued that memory implantation studies are not applicable to real life [[traumatic memories|memories of trauma]] such as childhood sexual abuse.<ref>Crook, L.; Dean, Martha (1999). "Lost in a Shopping Mall—A Breach of Professional Ethics". Ethics & Behavior 9 (1): 39–50. DOI:10.1207/s15327019eb0901_3. PMID 11657487.</ref> As it is not ethical to try to implant false memories of sexual abuse researchers have tried to get around this by choosing other events that are seen as negative but not traumatic. Being lost in a shopping mall for example would be a negative experience for most children.<ref name=Loftus/> Hyman and colleagues used memory implantation techniques with emotional events such as a specific birthday party (positive) and being hospitalized overnight(negative). They found that using emotional events did not change the rate of false memory creation significantly compared with other studies.<ref name=Hyman>{{cite journal|last=Hyman|first=Ira E.|author2=Husband, Troy H |author3=Billings, James F. |title=False Memories of Childhood Experiences|journal=Applied Cognitive Psychology|year=1995|volume=9|pages=181–197|doi=10.1002/acp.2350090302}}</ref>
The methods used in memory implantation studies are meant to mimic those used by some therapists to [[recovered memory therapy|recover]] [[repressed memories]] of childhood events.<ref name="wade and garry"/> The high rate of people "remembering" false events shows that memories cannot always be taken at face value. Being told to go home and look at old photos to jog your memory can help you remember real events, but paired with suggestions from a therapist it might also lead to false memories.


Memory implantation studies are also similar to recovered memory therapy in the way that they involve an authoritative figure claiming to know that the event actually happened and applying pressure on the participant/patient to remember.<ref name="wade and garry"/>
⚫
== Memory implantation research with children ==

In 1998 Herrmann and Yoder published an article arguing for the cessation of memory implantation research with children.<ref name="herrmann and yoder">Herrmann, D., & Yoder, C. (1998). The potential effects of the implanted memory paradigm on child subjects. ''Applied Cognitive Psychology'', 12(3), 198-206. {{DOI|10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199806)12:3<198::AID-ACP1522>3.0.CO;2-Y}}</ref> The criticisms referred to several studies investigating the suggestibility of children written by Ceci and colleagues.<ref>Ceci, S. J. and Bruck, M. (1993). Suggestibility of the child witness: A historical review and synthesis. ''Psychological Bulletin'', 113, 403±439.</ref><ref>Ceci, S. J., Loftus, E. F., Leichtman, M. and Bruck, M. (1994). The possible role of source misattributions in the creation of false beliefs among preschoolers. The International Journal of Clinical & Experimental Hypnosis, 42, 304±320.</ref> Herrmann and Yoer argue that the methods used can have negative implications for the children used such as lessen their respect for authority, be damaging for their concept of self (feel incompetent when it is pointed out that their memories are wrong) and cause stress.<ref name="herrmann and yoder"/> This article created much debate and several commentaries to the article were published in the same June edition of the journal "Applied Cognitive Psychology" together with the original article. One of these was written by Ceci, Bruck and Loftus who disagree with the statements in Herrmann and Yoder's article. According to these authors there is no evidence that any children have been harmed in a memory implantation study and until such evidence exists there is no reason to stop using these techniques with children as long as it produces good research.<ref name="ceci et al">Ceci, S. J., Bruck, M., & Loftus, E. F. (1998). On the ethics of memory implantation research. ''Applied Cognitive Psychology'', 12(3), 230-240. {{DOI|10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199806)12:3<230::AID-ACP526>3.0.CO;2-1}}</ref> Ornstein and Gordon also replied to Herrmann and Yoder's article saying that although people conducting research with children have an ethical responsibility there is much to be gained from memory implantation research and the benefits outweigh the potential risk for children involved.<ref>Ornstein, P. A., & Gordon, B. N. (1998). Risk versus rewards of applied research with children: Comments on the potential effects of the implanted-memory paradigm on child participants by douglas herrmann and carol yoder. ''Applied Cognitive Psychology'', 12(3), 241-244. {{DOI|10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199806)12:3<241::AID-ACP527>3.0.CO;2-V}}</ref> Another commentary written by Goodman, Quas and Redlich argues that there is reason to believe that children in general enjoy participating in false memory studies and that the benefits of these studies for research into eyewitness memory are many. They also refer to several cases where memory implantation studies have been cited in court and contributed to convictions being overturned.<ref>Goodman, G. S., Quas, J. A., & Redlich, A. D. (1998). The ethics of conducting false memory research with children: A reply to herrmann and yoder. ''Applied Cognitive Psychology'', 12(3), 207-217. {{DOI|10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199806)12:3<207::AID-ACP523>3.0.CO;2-T}}</ref> Thompson and Jackson propose a modified version of the suggestions from Herrmann and Yoder and say that methods for being more ethically aware when doing research with children have to be developed.<ref>Thompson, R. A., & Jackson, S. (1998). Ethical dimensions of child memory research. ''Applied Cognitive Psychology'', 12(3), 218-224. {{DOI|10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199806)12:3<218::AID-ACP524>3.0.CO;2-M}}</ref> Also Westcott agrees with the general concerns about researchers having to take extra care when working with children.<ref>Westcott, H. (1998). Commentary on herrmann and yoders the potential effects of the implanted memory paradigm on child subjects. ''Applied Cognitive Psychology'', 12(3), 225-229. {{DOI|10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199806)12:3<225::AID-ACP525>3.0.CO;2-R}}</ref> In their responding article to all the commentaries Yoder and Herrmann again question whether memory implantation research with children is necessary and conclude that ethical guidelines should be put in place by Society for Applied Research on Memory and Cognition(SARMAC).<ref>Yoder, C., & Herrmann, D. (1998). Revisiting the ethics of implanted memory research with children. ''Applied Cognitive Psychology'', 12(3), 245-249. {{DOI|10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199806)12:3<245::AID-ACP528>3.0.CO;2-G}}</ref> Although all the researchers involved in these commentaries from this issue of "Applied Cognitive Psychology" put forward different arguments the general consensus was that doing research with children calls for extra care and the benefits from the research must outweigh potential risk to the participating children.
Memory implantation techniques in general also illustrate how people can relatively easily come to remember things that actually never happened. This poses a big problem for criminal confessions resulting from suggestive questioning by police and others and also for the accuracy associated with [[eyewitness memory]].

It has been argued that memory implantation studies are not applicable to real life [[traumatic memories|memories of trauma]] such as childhood sexual abuse.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Crook | first1 = L. | last2 = Dean | first2 = Martha | year = 1999 | title = Lost in a Shopping Mall—A Breach of Professional Ethics | journal = Ethics & Behavior | volume = 9 | issue = 1| pages = 39–50 | doi = 10.1207/s15327019eb0901_3 | pmid = 11657487 }}</ref> As it is not ethical to try to implant false memories of sexual abuse researchers have tried to get around this by choosing other events that are seen as negative but not traumatic. Being lost in a shopping mall for example would be a negative experience for most children.<ref name=Loftus/> Hyman and colleagues used memory implantation techniques with emotional events such as a specific birthday party (positive) and being hospitalized overnight (negative). They found that using emotional events did not change the rate of false memory creation significantly compared with other studies.<ref name=Hyman>{{cite journal|last=Hyman|first=Ira E.|author2=Husband, Troy H |author3=Billings, James F. |title=False Memories of Childhood Experiences|journal=Applied Cognitive Psychology|year=1995|volume=9|issue=3|pages=181–197|doi=10.1002/acp.2350090302}}</ref>

⚫
== Research with children ==
In 1998 Herrmann and Yoder published an article arguing for the cessation of memory implantation research with children.<ref name="herrmann and yoder">{{cite journal | last1 = Herrmann | first1 = D. | last2 = Yoder | first2 = C. | year = 1998 | title = The potential effects of the implanted memory paradigm on child subjects | journal = Applied Cognitive Psychology | volume = 12 | issue = 3| pages = 198–206 | doi = 10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199806)12:3<198::AID-ACP1522>3.0.CO;2-Y }}</ref> The criticisms referred to several studies investigating the suggestibility of children written by Ceci and colleagues.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Ceci | first1 = S. J. | last2 = Bruck | first2 = M. | year = 1993 | title = Suggestibility of the child witness: A historical review and synthesis | journal = Psychological Bulletin | volume = 113 | issue = 3| pages = 403–439 | doi=10.1037/0033-2909.113.3.403| pmid = 8316609 | citeseerx = 10.1.1.123.3489 | s2cid = 16233880 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Ceci | first1 = S. J. | last2 = Loftus | first2 = E. F. | last3 = Leichtman | first3 = M. | last4 = Bruck | first4 = M. | year = 1994 | title = The possible role of source misattributions in the creation of false beliefs among preschoolers | journal = The International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis | volume = 42 | issue = 4| pages = 304–320 | doi=10.1080/00207149408409361 | pmid=7960288}}</ref> Herrmann and Yoer argue that the methods used can have negative implications for the children used such as lessen their respect for authority, be damaging for their concept of self (feel incompetent when it is pointed out that their memories are wrong) and cause stress.<ref name="herrmann and yoder"/>

This article created much debate and several commentaries to the article were published in the same June edition of the journal ''Applied Cognitive Psychology'' together with the original article. One of these was written by Ceci, Bruck and Loftus who disagree with the statements in Herrmann and Yoder's article. According to these authors there is no evidence that any children have been harmed in a memory implantation study and until such evidence exists there is no reason to stop using these techniques with children as long as it produces good research.<ref name="ceci et al">{{cite journal | last1 = Ceci | first1 = S. J. | last2 = Bruck | first2 = M. | last3 = Loftus | first3 = E. F. | year = 1998 | title = On the ethics of memory implantation research | journal = Applied Cognitive Psychology | volume = 12 | issue = 3| pages = 230–240 | doi = 10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199806)12:3<230::AID-ACP526>3.0.CO;2-1 | doi-access = free }}</ref>

Ornstein and Gordon also replied to Herrmann and Yoder's article saying that although people conducting research with children have an ethical responsibility there is much to be gained from memory implantation research and the benefits outweigh the potential risk for children involved.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Ornstein | first1 = P. A. | last2 = Gordon | first2 = B. N. | year = 1998 | title = Risk versus rewards of applied research with children: Comments on the potential effects of the implanted-memory paradigm on child participants by douglas herrmann and carol yoder | journal = Applied Cognitive Psychology | volume = 12 | issue = 3| pages = 241–244 | doi = 10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199806)12:3<241::AID-ACP527>3.0.CO;2-V }}</ref>

Another commentary written by Goodman, Quas and Redlich argues that there is reason to believe that children in general enjoy participating in false memory studies and that the benefits of these studies for research into eyewitness memory are many. They also refer to several cases where memory implantation studies have been cited in court and contributed to convictions being overturned.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Goodman | first1 = G. S. | last2 = Quas | first2 = J. A. | last3 = Redlich | first3 = A. D. | year = 1998 | title = The ethics of conducting false memory research with children: A reply to herrmann and yoder | journal = Applied Cognitive Psychology | volume = 12 | issue = 3| pages = 207–217 | doi = 10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199806)12:3<207::AID-ACP523>3.0.CO;2-T | citeseerx = 10.1.1.467.1439 }}</ref>

Thompson and Jackson propose a modified version of the suggestions from Herrmann and Yoder and say that methods for being more ethically aware when doing research with children have to be developed.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Thompson | first1 = R. A. | last2 = Jackson | first2 = S. | year = 1998 | title = Ethical dimensions of child memory research | journal = Applied Cognitive Psychology | volume = 12 | issue = 3| pages = 218–224 | doi = 10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199806)12:3<218::AID-ACP524>3.0.CO;2-M }}</ref> Also Westcott agrees with the general concerns about researchers having to take extra care when working with children.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Westcott | first1 = H | year = 1998 | title = Commentary on herrmann and yoders the potential effects of the implanted memory paradigm on child subjects | journal = Applied Cognitive Psychology | volume = 12 | issue = 3| pages = 225–229 | doi = 10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199806)12:3<225::AID-ACP525>3.0.CO;2-R }}</ref>

In their responding article to all the commentaries Yoder and Herrmann again question whether memory implantation research with children is necessary and conclude that ethical guidelines should be put in place by [[Society for Applied Research in Memory and Cognition]] (SARMAC).<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Yoder | first1 = C. | last2 = Herrmann | first2 = D. | year = 1998 | title = Revisiting the ethics of implanted memory research with children | journal = Applied Cognitive Psychology | volume = 12 | issue = 3| pages = 245–249 | doi = 10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199806)12:3<245::AID-ACP528>3.0.CO;2-G }}</ref> Although all the researchers involved in these commentaries from this issue of ''Applied Cognitive Psychology'' put forward different arguments, the general consensus was that doing research with children calls for extra care and the benefits from the research must outweigh potential risk to the participating children.

== General criticism of the concept ''The Unconscious'' in therapies ==
Sociologist [[Richard Ofshe]], an expert on false memories due to [[Coercion|coercive]] [[interrogation]]s as well as suggestive therapies,<ref name="PMID7960294">R. J. Ofshe, M. T. Singer: ''Recovered-memory therapy and robust repression: influence and pseudomemories.'' In: ''The International journal of clinical and experimental hypnosis.'' Vol 42, Nr 4, October 1994, p.&nbsp;391–410, {{doi|10.1080/00207149408409367}}, {{PMID|7960294}}.</ref> has testified as expert witness in many court cases dealing with spectacular legal scandals. Based on these experiences he published in 1999, together with a co-author, a fundamental criticism of the concept of [[Unconscious mind|the unconscious]], because he considered it as the main underlying cause of the ''implanted memories'' he had been dealing with:<ref>Ethan Watters; Richard Ofshe: ''Therapy's delusions: the myth of the unconscious and the exploitation of today's walking worried'', Scribner, New York 1999, {{ISBN|9780684835846}}, p.&nbsp;39.</ref><blockquote>.... the idea of the dynamic unconscious proposes a powerful shadow mind that, unknown to its host, willfully influences the most minor thought and behavior. There is no scientific evidence of this sort of purposeful unconscious, nor is there evidence that psychotherapists have special methods for laying bare our out-of-awareness.</blockquote>


== See also ==
== See also ==
* [[Misinformation effect]]
* [[Confabulation]]
⚫
* [[Imagination inflation]]
* [[Memory errors]]
* [[Memory errors]]
* [[Misinformation effect]]
* [[Source-monitoring error]]
* [[Source-monitoring error]]
⚫
* [[Imagination inflation]]


==References==
==References==
Line 38: Line 62:


<!--Please don't change anything and press save -->
<!--Please don't change anything and press save -->

{{memory}}


[[Category:Memory]]
[[Category:Memory]]

Latest revision as of 11:12, 20 November 2024

Memory implantation is a technique used in cognitive psychology to investigate human memory. In memory implantation studies researchers make people believe that they remember an event that actually never happened. The false memories that have been successfully implanted in people's memories include remembering being lost in a mall as a child, taking a hot air balloon ride, among other things which could be both good or bad.[1][2][3]

Memory implantation techniques were developed in the 1990s as a way of providing evidence of how easy it is to distort people's memories of past events. Most of the studies on memory implantation were published in the context of the debate about repressed memories and the possible danger of digging for lost memories in therapy. The successful implantation of memories in people's minds has implications for therapy and legal settings.

Successful memory implantation

[edit]

Published studies

[edit]

The first formal studies using memory implantation were published in the early 1990s, the most famous being "The Formation of False Memories" (commonly referred to as the "Lost in the Mall" study) by Loftus and Pickrell.[1] The basic technique used in this study involved asking family members of a participant to provide narratives of events that happened when they were young and then add another event that definitely had not happened. The participants saw these four narratives and were told to try to remember as much as possible about each event. Across a number of studies using memory implantation, about 37% of people have come to remember parts of or entire events that never actually happened.[4]

Other studies have expanded on this paradigm by introducing photos instead of narratives. Wade and colleagues found that 50% of people came to remember details of a hot air balloon ride that never happened, after seeing a manipulated photo depicting the event.[5] Later it has been argued that photos by themselves do not produce more false memories than narratives, but that both methods have the power to successfully implant false memories.[6] Real photos have also been found to increase the creation of false memories. In a study by Lindsay and colleagues people were shown a childhood photo from the same time period as the false event. Seeing the photo resulted in more false memories, even when the photos did not depict the actual event.[7]

In a study with children 1999 Pezdek and Hodge found that it was easier to implant a memory of a plausible event (being lost in a mall) than an implausible one (receiving a rectal enema).[8] Later follow up studies, however, show that the perceived plausibility of a false event can be changed, making the false event easier to implant.[9][10] Taken together, these findings show that there are many factors that are important for the way people remember events.

Mazzoni also suggest a model for the development of false memories through suggestions which model includes 3 processes.[10] The first process is to make people perceive the event as plausible, the second is to make people believe it is likely to have happened to them and the third step is to help people interpret thoughts and fantasies about the event as memories. Other factors influencing the likelihood of producing false memories include imagining the events and making a source-monitoring error, specifically reality monitoring.[11]

[edit]

A real life example of memory implantation occurred during the criminal case against Paul Ingram. Ingram was accused by his daughters of recurring sexual abuse in their childhood. Ingram denied all allegations at first but after being interviewed by police and therapists he came to remember multiple instances of abuse.

Sociologist Richard Ofshe considered this confession a result of suggestive questioning and decided to test his theory. He told Ingram about a made-up scenario and said it was another accusation made by his children. Ofshe asked Ingram to try and remember as much as possible about this new event. Ingram could not recall anything straight away but after thinking about it for some time came up with a written confession where he described in detail what had happened. His children confirmed to Ofshe that the event had never actually happened; Ingram had created an entirely false memory of an event after suggestions from Ofshe. Ofshe considered this successful memory implantation evidence of Paul Ingram's suggestibility and in his opinion it questions the accuracy of Ingram's other confessions.[12]

Implications

[edit]

The methods used in memory implantation studies are meant to mimic those used by some therapists to recover repressed memories of childhood events.[4] The high rate of people "remembering" false events shows that memories cannot always be taken at face value. Being told to go home and look at old photos to jog your memory can help you remember real events, but paired with suggestions from a therapist it might also lead to false memories.

Memory implantation studies are also similar to recovered memory therapy in the way that they involve an authoritative figure claiming to know that the event actually happened and applying pressure on the participant/patient to remember.[4]

Memory implantation techniques in general also illustrate how people can relatively easily come to remember things that actually never happened. This poses a big problem for criminal confessions resulting from suggestive questioning by police and others and also for the accuracy associated with eyewitness memory.

It has been argued that memory implantation studies are not applicable to real life memories of trauma such as childhood sexual abuse.[13] As it is not ethical to try to implant false memories of sexual abuse researchers have tried to get around this by choosing other events that are seen as negative but not traumatic. Being lost in a shopping mall for example would be a negative experience for most children.[1] Hyman and colleagues used memory implantation techniques with emotional events such as a specific birthday party (positive) and being hospitalized overnight (negative). They found that using emotional events did not change the rate of false memory creation significantly compared with other studies.[14]

Research with children

[edit]

In 1998 Herrmann and Yoder published an article arguing for the cessation of memory implantation research with children.[15] The criticisms referred to several studies investigating the suggestibility of children written by Ceci and colleagues.[16][17] Herrmann and Yoer argue that the methods used can have negative implications for the children used such as lessen their respect for authority, be damaging for their concept of self (feel incompetent when it is pointed out that their memories are wrong) and cause stress.[15]

This article created much debate and several commentaries to the article were published in the same June edition of the journal Applied Cognitive Psychology together with the original article. One of these was written by Ceci, Bruck and Loftus who disagree with the statements in Herrmann and Yoder's article. According to these authors there is no evidence that any children have been harmed in a memory implantation study and until such evidence exists there is no reason to stop using these techniques with children as long as it produces good research.[18]

Ornstein and Gordon also replied to Herrmann and Yoder's article saying that although people conducting research with children have an ethical responsibility there is much to be gained from memory implantation research and the benefits outweigh the potential risk for children involved.[19]

Another commentary written by Goodman, Quas and Redlich argues that there is reason to believe that children in general enjoy participating in false memory studies and that the benefits of these studies for research into eyewitness memory are many. They also refer to several cases where memory implantation studies have been cited in court and contributed to convictions being overturned.[20]

Thompson and Jackson propose a modified version of the suggestions from Herrmann and Yoder and say that methods for being more ethically aware when doing research with children have to be developed.[21] Also Westcott agrees with the general concerns about researchers having to take extra care when working with children.[22]

In their responding article to all the commentaries Yoder and Herrmann again question whether memory implantation research with children is necessary and conclude that ethical guidelines should be put in place by Society for Applied Research in Memory and Cognition (SARMAC).[23] Although all the researchers involved in these commentaries from this issue of Applied Cognitive Psychology put forward different arguments, the general consensus was that doing research with children calls for extra care and the benefits from the research must outweigh potential risk to the participating children.

General criticism of the concept The Unconscious in therapies

[edit]

Sociologist Richard Ofshe, an expert on false memories due to coercive interrogations as well as suggestive therapies,[24] has testified as expert witness in many court cases dealing with spectacular legal scandals. Based on these experiences he published in 1999, together with a co-author, a fundamental criticism of the concept of the unconscious, because he considered it as the main underlying cause of the implanted memories he had been dealing with:[25]

.... the idea of the dynamic unconscious proposes a powerful shadow mind that, unknown to its host, willfully influences the most minor thought and behavior. There is no scientific evidence of this sort of purposeful unconscious, nor is there evidence that psychotherapists have special methods for laying bare our out-of-awareness.

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c Loftus, Elizabeth F; Pickrell, Jacqueline E (December 1995). "The Formation of False Memories" (PDF). Psychiatric Annals. 25 (12): 720–725. doi:10.3928/0048-5713-19951201-07. S2CID 59286093. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2020-02-27.
  2. ^ Wade, Kimberley A; Garry, Maryanne; Read, J. Don; Lindsay, Stephen (September 2002). "A picture is worth a thousand lies: Using false photographs to create false childhood memories". Psychonomic Bulletin & Review. 9 (3): 597–603. doi:10.3758/BF03196318. PMID 12412902.
  3. ^ Lindsay, D.S; Hagen, L.; Read, J.D.; Wade, K.A.; Garry, M. (2004). "True photographs and false memories". Psychological Science. 15 (3): 149–154. doi:10.1111/j.0956-7976.2004.01503002.x. PMID 15016285. S2CID 18977129.
  4. ^ a b c Wade, Kimberly A.; Garry, Maryanne (2005). "Strategies for verifying false autobiographical memories". The American Journal of Psychology. 118 (4): 587–602. doi:10.2307/30039087. JSTOR 30039087. PMID 16402747. S2CID 40151384.
  5. ^ Wade, K.A.; Garry, M.; Read, J.D.; Lindsay, D.S. (2002). "A picture is worth a thousand lies: Using false photographs to create false childhood memories". Psychonomic Bulletin & Review. 9 (3): 597–603. doi:10.3758/BF03196318. PMID 12412902.
  6. ^ Garry, Maryanne; Wade, Kimberly A. (2005). "Actually, a picture is worth less than 45 words: Narratives produce more false memories than photographs do". Psychonomic Bulletin & Review. 12 (2): 359–366. doi:10.3758/bf03196385. PMID 16082819.
  7. ^ Lindsay, D.S.; Hagen, L.; Read, J.D.; Wade, K.A.; Garry, M. (2004). "True photographs and false memories". Psychological Science. 15 (3): 149–154. doi:10.1111/j.0956-7976.2004.01503002.x. PMID 15016285. S2CID 18977129.
  8. ^ Pezdek, K.; Hodge, D. (1999). "Planting False Childhood Memories in Children: The Role of Event Plausibility". Child Development. 70 (4): 887–895. doi:10.1111/1467-8624.00064.
  9. ^ Pezdek, Kathy; Blandon-Gitlin, Iris; Lam, Shirley; Hart, Rhiannon Ellis; Schooler, Jonathan W. (December 2006). "Is knowing believing? The role of event plausibility and background knowledge in planting false beliefs about the personal past". Memory & Cognition. 34 (8): 1628–1635. doi:10.3758/BF03195925. PMID 17489289. S2CID 20426384. ProQuest 217453426.
  10. ^ a b Mazzoni, G. A. L.; Loftus, E. F.; Kirsch, I. (2001). "Changing beliefs about implausible autobiographical events: A little plausibility goes a long way". Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied. 7 (1): 51–59. doi:10.1037/1076-898X.7.1.51. PMID 11577619.
  11. ^ Hyman, Ira E.; James Billings, F. (January 1998). "Individual Differences and the Creation of False Childhood Memories". Memory. 6 (1): 1–20. doi:10.1080/741941598. PMID 9640430.
  12. ^ Ofshe, Richard J. (1992). "Inadvertent Hypnosis During Interrogation: False Confession Due to Dissociative State; Mis-Identified Multiple Personality and the Satanic Cult Hypothesis". International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis. 40 (3): 125–156. doi:10.1080/00207149208409653. PMID 1399152.
  13. ^ Crook, L.; Dean, Martha (1999). "Lost in a Shopping Mall—A Breach of Professional Ethics". Ethics & Behavior. 9 (1): 39–50. doi:10.1207/s15327019eb0901_3. PMID 11657487.
  14. ^ Hyman, Ira E.; Husband, Troy H; Billings, James F. (1995). "False Memories of Childhood Experiences". Applied Cognitive Psychology. 9 (3): 181–197. doi:10.1002/acp.2350090302.
  15. ^ a b Herrmann, D.; Yoder, C. (1998). "The potential effects of the implanted memory paradigm on child subjects". Applied Cognitive Psychology. 12 (3): 198–206. doi:10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199806)12:3<198::AID-ACP1522>3.0.CO;2-Y.
  16. ^ Ceci, S. J.; Bruck, M. (1993). "Suggestibility of the child witness: A historical review and synthesis". Psychological Bulletin. 113 (3): 403–439. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.123.3489. doi:10.1037/0033-2909.113.3.403. PMID 8316609. S2CID 16233880.
  17. ^ Ceci, S. J.; Loftus, E. F.; Leichtman, M.; Bruck, M. (1994). "The possible role of source misattributions in the creation of false beliefs among preschoolers". The International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis. 42 (4): 304–320. doi:10.1080/00207149408409361. PMID 7960288.
  18. ^ Ceci, S. J.; Bruck, M.; Loftus, E. F. (1998). "On the ethics of memory implantation research". Applied Cognitive Psychology. 12 (3): 230–240. doi:10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199806)12:3<230::AID-ACP526>3.0.CO;2-1.
  19. ^ Ornstein, P. A.; Gordon, B. N. (1998). "Risk versus rewards of applied research with children: Comments on the potential effects of the implanted-memory paradigm on child participants by douglas herrmann and carol yoder". Applied Cognitive Psychology. 12 (3): 241–244. doi:10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199806)12:3<241::AID-ACP527>3.0.CO;2-V.
  20. ^ Goodman, G. S.; Quas, J. A.; Redlich, A. D. (1998). "The ethics of conducting false memory research with children: A reply to herrmann and yoder". Applied Cognitive Psychology. 12 (3): 207–217. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.467.1439. doi:10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199806)12:3<207::AID-ACP523>3.0.CO;2-T.
  21. ^ Thompson, R. A.; Jackson, S. (1998). "Ethical dimensions of child memory research". Applied Cognitive Psychology. 12 (3): 218–224. doi:10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199806)12:3<218::AID-ACP524>3.0.CO;2-M.
  22. ^ Westcott, H (1998). "Commentary on herrmann and yoders the potential effects of the implanted memory paradigm on child subjects". Applied Cognitive Psychology. 12 (3): 225–229. doi:10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199806)12:3<225::AID-ACP525>3.0.CO;2-R.
  23. ^ Yoder, C.; Herrmann, D. (1998). "Revisiting the ethics of implanted memory research with children". Applied Cognitive Psychology. 12 (3): 245–249. doi:10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199806)12:3<245::AID-ACP528>3.0.CO;2-G.
  24. ^ R. J. Ofshe, M. T. Singer: Recovered-memory therapy and robust repression: influence and pseudomemories. In: The International journal of clinical and experimental hypnosis. Vol 42, Nr 4, October 1994, p. 391–410, doi:10.1080/00207149408409367, PMID 7960294.
  25. ^ Ethan Watters; Richard Ofshe: Therapy's delusions: the myth of the unconscious and the exploitation of today's walking worried, Scribner, New York 1999, ISBN 9780684835846, p. 39.


Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Memory_implantation&oldid=1258562589"