Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

False Memories01:18

False Memories

False memories represent a cognitive distortion in which individuals recall events that did not happen, or remember them in an altered form. This phenomenon highlights the brain's constructive nature in processing and recalling memories, emphasizing that memory is not a perfect representation of past events but rather a dynamic reconstruction influenced by various factors.
One primary source of false memories is misattribution, where individuals incorrectly associate external information with...
Understanding Sleep01:11

Understanding Sleep

Sleep, an essential biological state, involves significant reductions in physical activity, sensory awareness, and interaction with the environment. This complex physiological process is primarily regulated by specific brain regions, notably the hypothalamus and pons, which govern the sleep-wake cycle or circadian rhythm.
The circadian rhythm, a nearly 24-hour cycle, is deeply influenced by environmental light cues. Light exposure directly affects the hypothalamus, which in turn regulates...
REM Sleep Behavior Disorder01:15

REM Sleep Behavior Disorder

REM Sleep Behavior Disorder (RBD) is a sleep disorder characterized by the absence of muscle paralysis that normally occurs during the REM phase of sleep. This absence allows individuals to physically act out their dreams, which are often vivid and disturbing. Common behaviors exhibited during episodes include kicking, punching, and yelling. These actions can be dangerous, potentially leading to injuries for the person with RBD or their bed partner.
RBD is significantly associated with...
Sleep-Wake Cycles01:24

Sleep-Wake Cycles

Sleep is an essential physiological process vital to maintaining overall well-being. The reticular activating system (RAS), a network of neurons in the brainstem, regulates wakefulness and sleep. While it may seem passive, sleep consists of distinct cycles, each with its unique characteristics and functions. Two key sleep phases are non-rapid eye movement (NREM) and  rapid eye movement (REM).
NREM Sleep
NREM sleep comprises four progressive stages that seamlessly merge:
Repressed Memory01:16

Repressed Memory

Repressed memories are a psychological phenomenon where memories of traumatic events are unconsciously blocked from a person's awareness. This process occurs as a defense mechanism, protecting the mind from the emotional impact of distressing or painful experiences. For example, a person who has experienced childhood trauma may grow up with no conscious recollection of the event. In such cases, the memories are thought to be buried deep within the subconscious, inaccessible to the conscious...
Eyewitness Memory01:22

Eyewitness Memory

Eyewitness memory refers to the recollection of events by someone who has directly witnessed them, often serving as critical evidence in legal settings. This type of memory is commonly used in criminal cases where a witness describes details like a suspect's appearance, clothing, or behavior during a crime. However, despite its perceived reliability, eyewitness memory is prone to significant errors.
One such error is memory distortion, which occurs because human memory does not function like a...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Context reinstatement increases true and false recognition of associated words: Evidence from the Deese/Roediger-McDermott (DRM) illusion.

Memory & cognition·2026
Same author

Brain organization of a memory champion.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026
Same author

A nap consolidates generalized perceptual learning.

Frontiers in sleep·2025
Same author

Endel Tulving: An appreciation of his scientific contributions.

Neuropsychologia·2025
Same author

Intentional binding effect depends on conscious access to the sensory consequences of action.

Communications psychology·2025
Same author

Neural evidence for modality-independent storage in working memory.

Current biology : CB·2025
Same journal

Transition and renewal at <i>Learning & Memory</i>.

Learning & memory (Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y.)·2026
Same journal

Experimentally induced encoding variability influences mnemonic discrimination: evidence from human behavioral data and global matching models.

Learning & memory (Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y.)·2026
Same journal

Temporal proximity to sleep determines emotional memory interference.

Learning & memory (Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y.)·2026
Same journal

Item recognition is associated with gut microbiota composition in healthy humans.

Learning & memory (Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y.)·2026
Same journal

Memory-based similar lure rejections promote subsequent memory for relative recency.

Learning & memory (Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y.)·2026
Same journal

Chronic stress enhances threat responding and impacts fear extinction.

Learning & memory (Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y.)·2026
See all related articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 20, 2026

The Deese-Roediger-McDermott (DRM) Task: A Simple Cognitive Paradigm to Investigate False Memories in the Laboratory
07:26

The Deese-Roediger-McDermott (DRM) Task: A Simple Cognitive Paradigm to Investigate False Memories in the Laboratory

Published on: January 31, 2017

Reduced false memory after sleep.

Kimberly M Fenn1, David A Gallo, Daniel Margoliash

  • 1Department of Psychology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824, USA. kfenn@msu.edu

Learning & Memory (Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y.)
|August 27, 2009
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Sleep significantly reduces false memories, according to new research. This finding suggests sleep enhances episodic memory accuracy by minimizing the Deese-Roediger-McDermott memory illusion.

More Related Videos

Measuring Neural Mechanisms Underlying Sleep-Dependent Memory Consolidation During Naps in Early Childhood
08:20

Measuring Neural Mechanisms Underlying Sleep-Dependent Memory Consolidation During Naps in Early Childhood

Published on: October 2, 2019

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jun 20, 2026

The Deese-Roediger-McDermott (DRM) Task: A Simple Cognitive Paradigm to Investigate False Memories in the Laboratory
07:26

The Deese-Roediger-McDermott (DRM) Task: A Simple Cognitive Paradigm to Investigate False Memories in the Laboratory

Published on: January 31, 2017

Measuring Neural Mechanisms Underlying Sleep-Dependent Memory Consolidation During Naps in Early Childhood
08:20

Measuring Neural Mechanisms Underlying Sleep-Dependent Memory Consolidation During Naps in Early Childhood

Published on: October 2, 2019

Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Neuroscience
  • Sleep Research
  • Memory Studies

Background:

  • Previous research indicates sleep aids memory consolidation for studied information.
  • Studies have largely overlooked sleep's impact on false memory formation.
  • The Deese-Roediger-McDermott (DRM) paradigm is a well-established measure of false memory.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate whether sleep influences the occurrence of false memories.
  • To determine if sleep reduces susceptibility to the DRM memory illusion.
  • To examine the effect of sleep on both false and correct recognition.

Main Methods:

  • Three experiments were conducted utilizing the Deese-Roediger-McDermott (DRM) paradigm.
  • Participants underwent memory tests after periods of sleep or wakefulness with equivalent retention intervals.
  • Recognition accuracy for both studied and nonstudied (but related) words was assessed.

Main Results:

  • Sleep significantly reduced false recognition of nonstudied words in the DRM task.
  • Correct recognition of studied words remained unaffected by sleep.
  • The reduction in false memories after sleep was observed relative to a wakeful control condition.

Conclusions:

  • Sleep plays a crucial role in reducing the formation and recall of false memories.
  • These findings extend the known benefits of sleep to include enhanced accuracy in episodic memory.
  • Sleep actively inhibits memory distortions, contributing to more precise recall.