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Memory is NOT a Recorder
Our brains are far from perfectly functioning recorders of our life events.
Researchers have demonstrated just how easy it is to trick the mind into remembering something that didnāt happen.
They also used two very simple techniques to reverse those false memories.
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Memory is Not Reliable
The human memory system is fallible and malleable, so much so that it is possibleāand even quite commonāfor people to possess false memories.
Memory glitches can lead to all sorts of social implications, especially in the legal and forensic field.
But now, for the first time ever, scientists have evidence showing they can reverse false memories!
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"When people describe a memory, they will say that they are āabsolutely certainā of it. But this certainty can be an illusion. We suffer from the illusion of believing that our memories are accurate and pure"
LISA SON
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Short vs Long Term Memory
- Short-term memory allows us to be present in the moment.
- Long-term memory helps piece together our identity through the recollection of our past experiences, among other things.
- The farther back we go, the more our recollection gets murky.
- When you think back to your childhood, you are reconstructing your past while also being affected by who is asking, why, and how.
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"As the field of memory research has developed, itās become very clear that our memories are not ārecordingsā of the past that can be played back but rather are reconstructions, closer to imaginings informed by seeds of true experiences"
CHRISTOPHER MADAN
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"The same way that you can suggest false memories, you can reverse them by giving people a different framing"
AILEEN OEBERST
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Study Proves Reversal is Easy
Oeberstās study is innovative in suggesting that itās equally as easy to reverse false memories.
Knowing the base truth isnāt even necessary to revert the fake recollections.
Use these two techniques:
- Recall the exact source of the memory - what is leading you to remember this; what specific recollection do you, yourself, have?
- False memory sensitization - tell yourself that being pressured to recall something can elicit false memories.
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One Thing to Remember
Takeaway is that every memory is a meta-memory, or an interpretation of a past time, one that can be impurified or purified by suggestions from the social environment. Simple awareness of this fact is crucial.
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