Remembering Events That Never Happened

Childhood memories are often taken lightly considering it is hard to validate the memory, and as the older we get we begin to either doubt our memory by realizing it may have been someone else's memory we heard or were told about, or accept that our own childhood imagination may have distorted the authenticity of the memory. However, is there any difference in quality between these "fake" memories and authentic ones? In the article, developmental psychologist, Charles Fernyhough, discusses a large study which had been conducted in the UK. It showed that despite the skepticism the person may have about his or her memory, it does not feel any less of a memory. Also, the study researched on believed memories and nonbelieved memories, and it was shown that nonbelieved memories are more common than previously thought. Also, these nonbelieved memories took place primarily in middle childhood and ceased around adolescence.

"The researchers then had three categories of memory to compare: believed, nonbelieved, and believed-but-not-remembered. Nonbelieved memories showed no differences from believed memories on several variables, such as visual and tactile qualities, clarity, emotional intensity and richness, coherence, and mental time-travel. (All these ratings were lower for the believed-but-not-remembered events.) On other characteristics (such as auditory, smell and taste qualities, positive feelings and event significance), believed memories produced stronger ratings than either of the other two categories. As far as vividness was concerned, nonbelieved memories lay somewhere between believed memories and events that were believed but not remembered. One quality, strength of negative emotions, was particularly characteristic of nonbelieved memories."

Basically, we can remember things we don't believe actually happened and we can reject these memories because: the memory doesn't seem plausible, we realize the memory is not our own (such as a re-imagined story, or an anecdote), or because the memory because they don't fit with the individual's view of his or her own self. Without being able to analyze the past memory by going back in time, there is no sure way to accept or reject memories, regardless of their plausibility. Also, many of us remember memories which are clearly impossible, such as seeing Santa Claus. The credibility of a memory has no direct correlation to its construction as a memory.

This article reminded me of the idea of repressed memories we had discussed in one of our previous classes, and I wondered whether nonbelieved memories could serve as a basis for planting false repressed memories. Is it possible that the psychiatrists who planted repressed memories merely distorted nonbelieved memories?