False Memories: This Is How Our Memory Deceives Us
“That is true because I remember perfectly” It is a widely used argument and one that we usually take as valid without discussion. But then, why do different people have different memories of the same event if our memory is infallible?
The answer is clear, our memory constantly deceives us The brain takes shortcuts to save time and energy, and this leads it to make certain mistakes that can sometimes have consequences.
These “shortcuts” of the brain can cause errors in memory and give rise to so-called “false memories” which can appear both spontaneously and induced, and are characterized by a person’s memories being altered or even generated from nothing, being inconsistent with reality.
To begin with, we must be aware that our memory is not as accurate as we think and that, during the process, alterations may occur. In order to create a memory, different phases must occur.
1. That an event occurs and our attention is focused on it to some extent
First, an event occurs (both internal and external) and our attentional focus is focused on it (in whole or in part).
2. Information processing and filtering
Once we notice that event, we try to process it It is at that moment when filtering and restructuring begins, since that objective reality will be altered by our cognitive processes, our stereotypes, preconceived ideas…
For example, if I have just watched a scary movie and I am walking down the street at night without anyone to accompany me, I am more likely to detect shadows as possible threats.
3. Auto-completion of information
We have already processed the event and generated a certain degree of distortion, but when “recording it in our memory” gaps usually emerge, some large and others smaller.
To save us effort, Our brain tends to fill in these gaps with credible information that continues to fit with the preconceived ideas we had, or influenced by external sources. Once registered in the brain, that information is just as “real” as what has actually been perceived.
4. Recovery of memories
The next step is to evoke memories, that is, recover that information after having stored it. There are things that our brain “delete”, so we can only recover what has been consolidated in our neural networks.
But another big filtering and restructuring can happen here. Among those memories that may have been mixed from the beginning, now part of them is brought to “light” again, and with this raw material the gaps that may be generated with the passage of time are once again filled in. And again, the memories They can be influenced by external sources or simply by our ideas
At this point, we must pay special attention to the way in which the need to evoke something originates: it can be by seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting or touching neutral elements that have some relationship between them, or it can be done by exposing ourselves to questions, for example. In the case of questions, they can be biased, so that they already condition the answer and our brain; This simple stimulus can modify the gaps in our memory unconsciously.
This process of memorizing and recalling an event can occur multiple times and this may cause it to continue to alter, or there may come a time when one of the “versions” remains fixed, considering it absolutely true.
The appearance of false memories
With all this process, we see that There are different aspects in which our memory may not be as reliable as we thought From the moment we receive and interpret the information, through storage and finally the exhibition of the memory, it is modified. This alteration can be involuntary and spontaneous, or, on the contrary, it can be induced externally.
If an idea is repeated repeatedly, if alternative versions that are similar but consistent with the facts are presented, if a question is conditioned to force a type of response… all of this can alter the already intrinsically unreal information that we call memory.
“False memories” are key to understanding individual differences between people at a cognitive level, and being aware of them. can help us understand why we remember things differently
Understanding how memory works is a basic aspect for any psychologist, both for resolving interpersonal conflicts, treating phobias, traumas, etc. For example, in the case of trauma, we may not remember something because our survival mechanism is protecting us, and this memory may come to our mind later evoked by something that is related.
This can cause a great disturbance in the person, and if the psychologist knows how memory works, it will make an already very complex treatment easier. In the aspect of interpersonal conflicts, we often tend to think that the other “remembers what he wants” or that it is others who distort reality, and the psychologist can give us knowledge to understand why these discrepancies occur.
