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Social contagion of memory.

H L Roediger1, M L Meade, E T Bergman

  • 1Department of Psychology, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri 63130-4899, USA. roediger@artsci.wustl.edu

Psychonomic Bulletin & Review
|August 10, 2001
PubMed
Summary

False memories can spread between people through social influence, a process termed the social contagion of memory. This effect is stronger with shorter exposure times and more plausible false memories.

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Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Social Psychology
  • Neuroscience

Background:

  • False memories can be influenced by external factors.
  • Social influence is a known factor in memory distortion.
  • Understanding the mechanisms of memory contagion is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To introduce a new paradigm for studying the social contagion of memory.
  • To investigate how social influence leads to the implantation of false memories.
  • To determine factors influencing the strength of memory contagion.

Main Methods:

  • Subjects and confederates viewed household scenes with objects.
  • Collaborative recall tests were used to introduce potential false memories.
  • Individual recall tests were conducted after a delay to measure memory accuracy.
  • Scene presentation time and item schema consistency were manipulated.

Main Results:

  • Recall of confederate-suggested erroneous items was higher than in control conditions.
  • The social contagion of memory effect was more pronounced with shorter scene viewing times (15 sec).
  • Schema-consistent intrusions (e.g., toaster) were more likely to be falsely recalled.

Conclusions:

  • False memories are contagious and can be transmitted through social interaction.
  • Memory contagion is influenced by the duration of exposure and the plausibility of the suggested memory.
  • This research provides a framework for studying memory implantation via social influence.

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