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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...
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...
Implicit Memories01:24

Implicit Memories

Implicit memories, also known as non-declarative memories, are long-term memories that function outside of conscious awareness. These memories influence behavior and skills without explicit knowledge. This type of memory is evident in tasks like playing tennis, snowboarding, and texting. Implicit memory has three subsystems: procedural memory, conditioning, and priming. This type of memory is essential in various activities, from everyday tasks to specialized skills.
One key aspect of implicit...
Traumatic Memory01:20

Traumatic 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...
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...
Amnesia01:13

Amnesia

Amnesia is a condition marked by long-term memory loss, which impairs the ability to recall past events or create new memories.
The severity and duration of memory loss vary depending on the type and underlying cause. Amnesia is classified into two main types: retrograde and anterograde.
Retrograde amnesia is marked by the loss of memories formed before the onset of the condition. Patients may recall distant past events but often forget those occurring shortly before the incident.
Anterograde...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 9, 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

Can false memories prime problem solutions?

Mark L Howe1, Sarah R Garner, Stephen A Dewhurst

  • 1Department of Psychology, Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YF, UK. mark.howe@lancaster.ac.uk

Cognition
|September 4, 2010
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

False memories can enhance insight problem-solving. When participants falsely recalled critical lures from word lists, they solved related problems faster and more often, demonstrating a priming effect.

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

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Using a Classroom-Based Deese Roediger McDermott Paradigm to Assess the Effects of Imagery on False Memories
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Using a Classroom-Based Deese Roediger McDermott Paradigm to Assess the Effects of Imagery on False Memories

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An Experimental Analysis of Children's Ability to Provide a False Report about a Crime

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Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Neuroscience

Background:

  • False memories are known to influence implicit and explicit memory tasks.
  • The potential of false memories to prime higher-order cognitive processes remains underexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate if false memories can prime insight-based problem-solving.
  • To determine the conditions under which false memories facilitate cognitive tasks.

Main Methods:

  • Participants solved compound remote associate task (CRAT) problems.
  • Problem sets were primed using Deese/Roediger-McDermott (DRM) lists, where the critical lure matched the problem solution.
  • Performance was compared between primed and unprimed problems, contingent on false recall of the critical lure.

Main Results:

  • CRAT problems were solved significantly more often and faster when the critical lure was falsely recalled.
  • No significant difference in performance was observed when the critical lure was not falsely recalled.
  • A second experiment confirmed these findings were not due to the recall test itself.

Conclusions:

  • False memories can act as a cognitive primer, enhancing performance on insight-based problem-solving tasks.
  • The facilitative effect of false memories is contingent on their successful generation and recall.
  • These findings suggest an adaptive function for false memories in cognitive processes.