Research Paper On False Memory

“A false memory is a mental experience that is mistakenly taken to be a veridical representation of an event from one’s personal past. Memories can be false in relatively minor ways and in major ways that have profound implications for oneself and others” (Psychology of False Memories, 2001). In simpler terms, this definition means a false memory is the recollection of an event that did not actually happen. The purpose of this assignment is to show if the five subjects tested demonstrate the phenomenon of false memory. By reading the participants a list of words that belong to a specific category and then asking them to recall the words given to them, I could see if they claimed to hear a word that they did not actually hear.
The first person I tested was an African-American, 19-year-old male who is currently a college freshman. The test took place at around 2 p.m. in the 3rd floor lounge area in Campion Hall at Wheeling Jesuit University. The television was off and it was just me and the subject alone in the room so it was very quiet with no interruptions. We sat at opposite ends of the table and the room was well-lit. I informed him that I will read off eight lists of words to him one at a time and he is to pay attention to them and write down as many …show more content…
The test took place in room 365 of Campion Hall at about 8 p.m. I administered him the same eight lists of words while sitting on my bed and he recorded the words he remembered reading while sitting at my desk. We were the only ones in the room so it was quiet and the light was on. Just as usual, I told him the steps of the procedure and he was informed to write down the words he remembered hearing after each list was read to him. He wrote down 5 different instances where he claimed to hear the theme words; “sleep”, “cold”, “music”, and “window” on lists 5, 6, 7, and 8. On list 8, he wrote down the words “thrash” and “crash” that were not on the