Library:The Myth of Repressed Memory
| The Myth of Repressed Memory: False Memories and Allegations of Sexual Abuse | |
|---|---|
| Author | Elizabeth Loftus & Katherine Ketcham |
| First published | 1994 |
| ISBN | — |
| Role | Analysis |
| Domains | Science & Space Crime & Public Safety |
| Tactics | Pseudoscience / Junk Science |
The Myth of Repressed Memory: False Memories and Allegations of Sexual Abuse is a 1994 book by Elizabeth Loftus & Katherine Ketcham.
Summary
Psychologist Elizabeth Loftus, a leading researcher on memory, and writer Katherine Ketcham examine the 1980s and 1990s wave of cases in which adults in therapy "recovered" memories of childhood abuse that had supposedly been repressed for years.
They argue that memory is reconstructive and that suggestive therapy techniques can create detailed false memories.
Key points
- Memory is malleable. Loftus's experiments showed that people can be led to remember events that never happened, such as being lost in a shopping mall as a child.
- Therapy techniques. Hypnosis, guided imagery and repeated suggestion were linked to false memories.
- Real abuse. The authors stress that childhood abuse is real and serious, and that false memories harm genuine victims as well as the falsely accused.
Relevance to Bullshitopedia
The book explains how false memories can be created, which is central to understanding the satanic panic and coercive interrogation cases in Bullshitopedia.
Related entries
- Satanic ritual abuse at the McMartin Preschool
- The Central Park Five were guilty because they confessed
- Satan's Silence