Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsDefinitionExampleTheoriesInfluencing FactorsHow to ReduceHow to Identify False Memories
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Definition
Example
Theories
Influencing Factors
How to Reduce
How to Identify False Memories
Close
The misinformation effect is the tendency for the information you learned after an event to interfere with your originalmemoryof what happened. Research has shown that introducing even relatively subtle new information later on can dramatically affect how people remember events they have seen or experienced.
The misinformation effect illustrates how easily memories can be influenced. It also raises concerns about the reliability of memory—particularly when the memories of eyewitnesses are used to determine criminal guilt, referred to aseyewitness testimony.
At a GlanceSometimes, the things we learn after something happens can interfere with the memories we originally formed. The misinformation effect can lead to inaccurate memories and, in some cases, result in the formation offalse memories.
At a Glance
Sometimes, the things we learn after something happens can interfere with the memories we originally formed. The misinformation effect can lead to inaccurate memories and, in some cases, result in the formation offalse memories.
What Is the Misinformation Effect?
The work of psychologist Elizabeth Loftus and her colleagues has demonstrated that the questions asked after witnessing an event can influence a person’s memory of that event. In other words, if a question contains misleading information, it can distort the memory of the event, a phenomenon thatpsychologistshave dubbed “the misinformation effect.”
Elizabeth Loftus Biography
Misinformation Effect Example
An example of the misinformation effect could be a person who had witnessed a car accident on their way home from work. When they later hear a news report stating that the driver was speeding, they might later add that detail to their recollection of the event, even if that wasn’t what actually happened.
Example of the Misinformation Effect in Psychology Research
One of the questions asked was, “How fast were the cars going when they hit each other?“In some instances, however, a subtle change was made; participants were instead asked how fast the cars were going when they “smashed into” each other. Researchers discovered that using the word “smashed” instead of “hit” could change how the participants remembered the accident.
A week later, the participants were once again asked a series of questions, including “Did you see broken glass?” Most of the participants correctly answered no. But those who had been asked the “smashed” version of the question in the initial interview were more likely to incorrectly believe that they had indeed seen broken glass.
While it was a relatively minor change in how the question was asked, it significantly changed how witnesses recalled the event. This demonstrates how susceptible memory is to the effects of misinformation.
Flashbulb Memory: What to Know About Vivid Recall
Misinformation Effect Theories
Why does the misinformation effect happen, potentially leading to theformation of false memories? There are a few different theories.
Confabulation: When Memory Gaps Are Filled Unconsciously
Factors Influencing the Misinformation Effect
Research has shown that there are several factors that can contribute to the misinformation effect, making it more likely that event happenings will be distorted and lead to false memories.
Discussing the Event With Other Witnesses
Talking to other witnesses following an event can distort a person’s original memory.Their reports might conflict with the original memory of an event, and the new information might reshape or distort a witness’s original memory of the events as they occurred.
Reading or Watching News Reports
Reading news stories and watching television reports of an accident or event can also contribute to misinformation. People often forget the source of information, which means they might mistakenly believe that a piece of information was something they observed personally when, in reality, it was something they heard in a post-event news report.
Repeated Exposure to Misinformation
The more often people are exposed to misleading information, the more likely they are to incorrectly believe that the misinformation was part of the original event.
The Passage of Time
If the misleading information is presentedsome time after the original memory, it is likely to be much more accessible in memory.In these cases, the misleading information is much easier to retrieve, effectively blocking the retrieval of the original, correct information.
What Is Episodic Memory?
How to Reduce the Misinformation Effect
What can prevent intervening information and events from altering memories or even creating false memories? Writing down your memory of an important event immediately after it happens is one strategy that might help minimize the effects.
Keep in mind that even this strategy can introduce subtle errors, and writing these errors down can furthercement them in your memory.
Being aware that your memory can be influenced is another helpful and important strategy. While you might have a good memory, understand that everyone is susceptible to the misinformation effect.
That said, susceptibility may be even greater for people with a low need forcognition. People who have a high need for cognition tend to seek out lots of information to help make sense of events. People who have a low need for cognition, on the other hand, are more likely to useheuristics(mental shortcuts) to make sense of the world.
Research exploring the misinformation effect paradigm found that individuals with a high cognitive need were better at detecting differences between the original event memory and the misinformation.People with high cognitive need tend to think about ideas and pursue mentally challenging tasks, like puzzles.
How to Distinguish False Memories
Some argue that there is no way to distinguish a false memory from a real one. This creates a challenge not just when trying to remember a particular event, but also in memory research.
If there is video footage of the event, reviewing it can help you decide if your memories are real or if they could be false. It may also be beneficial to consider other people’s recollections of the event. If they are all saying the same thing, and it is different than what you remember, the misinformation effect may be at play.
What This Means For YouThe misinformation effect can profoundly impact our memories, sometimes causing us to believe that false memories are real. Taking the time to write down events after they occur can help reduce this effect—as long as the events happened as we wrote them down.Anyone can experience the misinformation effect. However, being aware of this can help you be more alert when recalling an event, potentially reducing your susceptibility to creating false memories.
What This Means For You
The misinformation effect can profoundly impact our memories, sometimes causing us to believe that false memories are real. Taking the time to write down events after they occur can help reduce this effect—as long as the events happened as we wrote them down.Anyone can experience the misinformation effect. However, being aware of this can help you be more alert when recalling an event, potentially reducing your susceptibility to creating false memories.
The misinformation effect can profoundly impact our memories, sometimes causing us to believe that false memories are real. Taking the time to write down events after they occur can help reduce this effect—as long as the events happened as we wrote them down.
Anyone can experience the misinformation effect. However, being aware of this can help you be more alert when recalling an event, potentially reducing your susceptibility to creating false memories.
The Mandela Effect: How Masses of People Can Have the Same False Memory
12 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.
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Challies DM, Hunt M, Garry M, Harper DN.Whatever gave you that idea? False memories following equivalence training: a behavioral account of the misinformation effect.J Exp Anal Behav. 2011;96(3):343‐362. doi:10.1901/jeab.2011.96-343
Challies DM, Hunt M, Garry M, Harper DN.Whatever gave you that idea? False memories following equivalence training: a behavioral account of the misinformation effect.J Exp Anal Behav. 2011;96(3):343-362. doi:10.1901/jeab.2011.96-343
Han Y.The misinformation effect and the type of misinformation: objects and the temporal structure of an episode.The American Journal of Psychology. 2017;130(4):467-476. doi:10.5406/amerjpsyc.130.4.0467
Loftus EF.Leading questions and the eyewitness report.Cogn Psychol. 1975;7(4):560-572. doi:10.1016/0010-0285(75)90023-7
Marsh EJ, Eslick AN, Fazio LK.False memories. In:Learning and Memory: A Comprehensive Reference. Elsevier; 2008:221-238. doi:10.1016/B978-012370509-9.00144-3
Huff MJ, Weinsheimer CC, Bodner GE.Reducing the misinformation effect through initial testing: Take two tests and recall me in the morning?.Appl Cogn Psychol. 2016;30(1):61‐69. doi:10.1002/acp.3167
Lins de Holanda Coelho G, H. P. Hanel P, J. Wolf L.The very efficient assessment of need for cognition: developing a six-item version.Assessment. 2020;27(8):1870-1885. doi:10.1177/1073191118793208
Leding J, Antonio L.Need for cognition and discrepancy detection in the misinformation effect.J Cognit Psychol. 2019;31(4):409-415. doi:10.1080/20445911.2019.1626400
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
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