Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsEffectsConsequencesPrevention

Table of ContentsView All

View All

Table of Contents

Effects

Consequences

Prevention

Close

False memoriesare misremembered, distorted, or fabricated recollections of past events. Such memories can be trivial, such as mistakenly remembering where you put your car keys. But they can also be much more serious, like when they result in an innocent person being accused of a crime they didn’t commit.

Having false memories is common, with one in three people incorrectly remembering past experiences.Learn some of the ways these memories can impact your behavior, and also some strategies you can use to minimize the consequences of false memories.

Effects of False Memories

False memories can have a wide range of effects. Mistaken or distorted memories can affect our day-to-day lives, leading to mistakes at work, at home, and in other important areas.

Research has also found that people often hold distorted or false memories about significant historical events,which can contribute to what’s known as theMandela Effect. While people can describe “flashbulb memories” in vivid detail, comparing the details of these memories against historical records reveals significant flaws in these recollections.

The following are just a few of the ways that researchers have shown false memories can alter behavior.

Changed Health Habits

Some researchers have suggested that using deception to implant false memories could be used to create positive behavior changes such as eating a more balanced diet or exercising more. This technique might also help alleviate anxiety ortreat psychological traumas.

These results indicate that not only can false memories be created quite easily through suggestion—but these incorrect memories can also have a very real impact on behavior.

Complicated Decision-Making

False memories can also have an impact on choice-supported remembering. In many cases, people misremember their choices, complicating the decision-making process. Research has shown that this can impact various decisions, including those that people make at the end of their lives.

For example, living wills are often touted as a way to ensure that end-of-life wishes are observed should the individual become seriously ill and unable to communicate.This document often includes specific information about the type of treatment, care, and interventions that a person does or does not want if they become terminally ill.

While many people create these documents and assume that they will recall what is in them, evidence suggests that this is not the case. Studies have shown that most people misremember their original choices about end-of-life decisions.

RecapEvidence suggests that false memories can impact behavior, including those related to health. People are also prone to misremembering their own choices, which can have an effect on their future decisions.

Recap

Evidence suggests that false memories can impact behavior, including those related to health. People are also prone to misremembering their own choices, which can have an effect on their future decisions.

Serious Consequences of False Memories

False memories have also been implicated in several serious cases, some fatal. In such instances, false memories have had a dramatic and disturbing impact on people’s lives.

People often read such stories and immediately think, “It could never happen to me. I have an excellent memory.” However, the evidence suggests otherwise. Everyone has false memories, even if their memory is great.

Some studies suggest that false memories may occur more frequently in certain people, namely those who haveexperienced traumaor individuals withpost-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)or depression.

How to Prevent False Memories

The problem with false memories is that they are very difficult to spot once formed.They don’t stand out from other memories and are instead seamlessly woven into the fabric of our remembered experiences.

In other words, there is no simple way to distinguish an accurate memory from a false one. Even the most vivid, clear, and distinct memories can be faulty.

That said, researchers have identified a few different strategies that might help prevent false memories from forming or help you distinguish the true from the false. Some of these strategies include:

One of the best ways to combat false memories is to be aware that they exist. Memory does not work like a video camera that records every detail exactly as it occurred and perfectly preserves it.

Memories are reconstructed every time you recall them, which means that errors don’t just happen; they are quite common.

Summary

While we sometimes think of false memories as relatively rare, researchers have found that such memories are pretty common and easily formed. Perhaps more importantly, even those with excellent memories are susceptible to forming false memories.

The key is to realize that your memory is vulnerable to misinformation. So, while it may be helpful, perhaps you cannot place as much trust in it as you might think.

13 Sources

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Otgaar H, Howe ML, Patihis L.What science tells us about false and repressed memories.Memory. 2022;30(1):16-21. doi:10.1080/09658211.2020.1870699

Maswood R, Rajaram S.Social transmission of false memory in small groups and large networks.Topics Cognit Sci. 2018;11(4):687-709. doi:10.1111.tops.12348

Nash RA, Berkowitz SR, Roche S.Public attitudes on the ethics of deceptively planting false memories to motivate healthy behavior.Appl Cogn Psychol. 2016;30(6):885-897. doi:10.1002/acp.3274

National Institute on Aging.Advanced care planning: Advance directives for health care.

Lind M, Visentini M, Mäntylä T, Del Missier F.Choice-supportive misremembering: A new taxonomy and review.Front Psychol. 2017;8:2062. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2017.02062

Otgaar H, Curci A, Mangiulli I, Battista F, Rizzotti E, Sartori G.A court ruled case on therapy-induced false memories.J Forensic Sci. 2022;67(5):2122-2129. doi:10.1111/1556-4029.15073

Diamond DM.When a child dies of heatstroke after a parent or caretaker unknowingly leaves the child in a car: How does it happen and is it a crime?Med Sci Law. 2019;59(2):115-126. doi:10.1177/0025802419831529

Goodyer J.We all have false memories. Here’s how yours are made. BBC Science Focus.

Otgaar H, Muris P, Howe ML, Merckelbach H.What drives false memories in psychopathology? A case for associative activation.Clin Psychol Sci. 2017;5(6):1048-1069. doi:10.1177/2167702617724424

Shaw J.Do false memories look real? Evidence that people struggle to identify rich false memories of committing crime and other emotional events.Front Psychol. 2020;11:650. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00650

Oliver MC, Bays RB, Zabrucky KM.False memories and the DRM paradigm: effects of imagery, list, and test type.J Gen Psychol. 2016;143(1):33-48. doi:10.1080/00221309.2015.1110558

Gallo DA, Lampinen JM.Chapter 20: Three pillars of false memory prevention: Orientation, evaluation, and corroboration. TheOxford Handbook of Metamemory. 2015:387-404. doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199336746.013.11

Meet Our Review Board

Share Feedback

Was this page helpful?Thanks for your feedback!What is your feedback?HelpfulReport an ErrorOtherSubmit

Was this page helpful?

Thanks for your feedback!

What is your feedback?HelpfulReport an ErrorOtherSubmit

What is your feedback?