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Updated: Jun 10, 2026
07:26
The Deese-Roediger-McDermott (DRM) Task: A Simple Cognitive Paradigm to Investigate False Memories in the Laboratory
Published on: January 31, 2017
Can we faithfully recall what we remembered?
Kerrie L Thomas1, Jonathan L C Lee, Barry J Everitt
1Cardiff School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, Museum Avenue, Cardiff CF10 3US, UK.
Discovery Medicine
|August 14, 2010
Summary
New memories require time for stabilization through a process called consolidation. Over time, these memories become resistant to disruption, suggesting permanent changes in neural connections.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Psychology
- Memory Research
Background:
- Long-term memory (LTM) formation is a time-dependent process.
- Recently acquired memories are vulnerable to interference.
- Consolidation stabilizes memories over time, making them resistant to disruption.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the evidence for time-dependent memory consolidation.
- To explore the neural mechanisms underlying memory stabilization.
- To discuss the structural changes in synaptic connections during memory formation.
Main Methods:
- Review of over a century of experimental studies on memory consolidation.
- Analysis of research on memory disruption by various factors (stimuli, lesions, drugs).
- Examination of neurobiological theories of memory, including synaptic plasticity.
Main Results:
- Empirical evidence strongly supports the concept of memory consolidation.
- Memories transition from a labile state to a stable, resistant state over time.
- Consolidation involves the formation and strengthening of specific synaptic connections.
Conclusions:
- Memory consolidation is a critical, time-dependent process for LTM.
- Synaptic plasticity, particularly "neurons that fire together, wire together," is a key mechanism.
- These synaptic modifications are believed to be permanent, ensuring memory persistence.
Related Concept Videos
01:18False 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...
One primary source of false memories is misattribution, where individuals incorrectly associate external information with...
01:22Eyewitness 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...
One such error is memory distortion, which occurs because human memory does not function like a...
01:16Interference and Decay
Forgetting is a complex cognitive phenomenon influenced by several factors, among which interference and decay are particularly prominent. These processes explain why individuals often struggle to retrieve specific information from memory, leading to lapses in recall that can be observed in everyday situations.
Interference occurs when competing memories hinder the retrieval of particular information. It can be classified into two types: proactive and retroactive interference. Proactive...
Interference occurs when competing memories hinder the retrieval of particular information. It can be classified into two types: proactive and retroactive interference. Proactive...
01:14Autobiographical Memory
Autobiographical memory is a unique type of episodic memory that involves recollecting personal life experiences. It allows individuals to remember significant events from their past, creating a narrative of their lives. One interesting phenomenon related to autobiographical memory is the reminiscence bump. This effect refers to the tendency of adults to recall more events from their second and third decades of life — typically between ages 10 to 30 — than from other periods. This period is...
01:20Traumatic Memory
Emotionally traumatic events often lead to memories that are exceptionally vivid and enduring, sometimes persisting with remarkable clarity throughout an individual's life. A classic example of this phenomenon is a person who survives a car accident. Even years later, they may recall every detail of the event with startling accuracy — the screeching of the tires, the jarring impact, and the acrid smell of burning rubber. Such vividness contrasts sharply with how an individual remembers mundane...
01:27Explicit Memories
Explicit memories, also known as declarative memories, are consciously remembered, recalled, and reported. Studying for a chemistry exam involves material that will become part of explicit memory. There are two types of explicit memory: episodic and semantic.
Episodic memory contains information about personally experienced events and is reported as a story. An example of episodic memory is recalling a birthday celebration. This type of memory includes the what, where, and when of an event, as...
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