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Processes of memory loss, recovery, and distortion
1Department of Psychology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA. wke@wjh.harvard.edu
Psychological Review
|January 1, 1997
Summary
Memory distortions and changes over time stem from the same processes underlying accurate recall and memory loss. Random changes in stored perceptual and reaction traces explain these memory phenomena.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Neuroscience
- Memory Research
Background:
- Memory is susceptible to distortion and change over time.
- Successive tests can reveal progressive alterations in recollection.
- Existing models do not fully explain both accurate recall and memory distortions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To propose a unified framework for understanding memory distortion and veridical recollection.
- To explain memory loss and recovery within a single theoretical model.
- To identify the underlying processes responsible for various memory phenomena.
Main Methods:
- Theoretical framework development.
- Analysis of memory encoding processes.
- Examination of trace perturbation during retention intervals.
Main Results:
- Memory distortion arises from the same processes as accurate recall.
- Parallel encoding of perceptual attributes (recognition) and reactions (recall) is proposed.
- Random perturbation of attribute traces explains memory loss and distortions.
Conclusions:
- A unified model explains diverse memory outcomes.
- Trace perturbation is a fundamental mechanism in memory dynamics.
- Understanding these processes is key to understanding memory accuracy and fallibility.