Choice-Supportive Misremembering: A New Taxonomy and Review

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Psychology
• Neuroscience
• Decision Science

Background:

• While memory's influence on decisions is studied, decision's impact on memory is less explored.
• Choice-supportive misremembering, where memory favors chosen options, is known but lacks systematic review.
• Existing research is scattered, necessitating a structured overview and critical appraisal.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review and categorize choice-supportive misremembering.
• To critically evaluate the empirical evidence for different types of misremembering.
• To explore cognitive and emotional explanations and identify future research directions.

Main Methods:

• Developed a novel taxonomy classifying choice-supportive misremembering into four types: misattribution, fact distortion, false memory, and selective forgetting.
• Reviewed existing literature based on this taxonomy.
• Assessed moderating factors and evaluated evidence for each misremembering type.

Main Results:

• Evidence for choice-supportive misattribution is robust, particularly in recognition memory tasks.
• Support for fact distortion, false memory, and selective forgetting is weaker, especially with varied memory assessments.
• The review identified significant gaps in understanding cognitive and emotional underpinnings.

Conclusions:

• Choice-supportive misremembering is a validated phenomenon, primarily demonstrated through misattribution.
• Further research is needed to strengthen evidence for other types and elucidate underlying mechanisms.
• Future studies should employ diverse memory tests and explore cognitive/emotional factors.