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Motivated forgetting and misremembering: perspectives from betrayal trauma theory
Anne P DePrince1, Laura S Brown, Ross E Cheit
1Center for Community Engagement and Service Learning, University of Denver, Denver, CO, USA. Anne.DePrince@du.edu
Nebraska Symposium on Motivation. Nebraska Symposium on Motivation
|February 7, 2012
Summary
Forgetting or misremembering traumatic events, like childhood abuse, can be adaptive for well-being. Betrayal trauma theory (BTT) suggests minimizing awareness of betrayal trauma protects victims from further risk.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Trauma Studies
- Memory Research
Background:
- Individuals may encounter information endangering well-being, where forgetting is adaptive.
- Childhood abuse by a caregiver exemplifies such a situation.
- Betrayal trauma theory (BTT) links event processing to betrayal by a trusted individual.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review conceptual and empirical issues in memory for trauma.
- To explore the implications of BTT for understanding forgetting and misremembering.
- To identify future research directions based on BTT.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of memory for trauma and BTT.
- Conceptual analysis of betrayal and its impact on memory.
- Empirical review of studies related to BTT and trauma memory.
Main Results:
- Minimizing awareness of betrayal trauma may be adaptive for victims.
- Full awareness of abuse can increase risk by jeopardizing vital relationships.
- BTT provides a framework for understanding adaptive forgetting in trauma survivors.
Conclusions:
- BTT offers valuable insights into memory for traumatic events, particularly betrayal trauma.
- Understanding adaptive forgetting is crucial for trauma treatment and support.
- Further research is needed to explore the nuances of memory and betrayal trauma.
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