After our discussion in class on Tuesday about how the brain can fabricate false memories, I decided to look up more about this topic. I came across an interesting website from pbs.org that showcases the show "Don't Forget!" This series covers such topics as short term memory loss, the role of the hippocampus in remembering and identifying faces, new potential treatments for Alzheimer's and how to evade memory loss, why emotional memories are more easily recalled, and how our memories are sometimes subject to suggestions.
I watched a short clip about how memory lies. In this clip, researcher Elizabeth Loftus from the University of California, Irvine is trying to get Alan to believe that a certain event happened in his childhood that he does not recall. It turns out she was just making up the event; however, Alan's mind was partially influenced by her suggestive memory. Loftus is trying show that there is an increased confidence in a memory that is suggested to a person but was completely made up. Sometimes you can get people to change how they behave based on those false memories. I thought that this clip related to the story that Dr. Maclin told in class about the two girls who accused their grandfather of taking pornographic videos of them when they were younger because of leading questions by interviewers.
Just as this clip and Dr. Maclin's story suggest, misleading and misguided suggestions can often lead witnesses to wrongfully accuse and prosecute innocent people because of their false memories. I think the clip of Loftus trying to trick Alan gives us a good perspective on how are brains can create AND believe false memories. Something as little as a suggestive or persuasive comment from even a stranger can cause us to second guess ourselves. We saw this example between adults, imagine the effects of implementing a false memory could have on a young child whose brain is still developing and maturing. If our own brain lacks confidence in little scenarios such as turning off the stove before leaving or using a blinker at that last turn, it is only plausible that other people who are persistent and persuasive in their suggestions could have a profound impact on our "memory."
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