Frequently Asked Questions

I have read about people going to jail on the testimony of kids who claim to have been molested and their repressed memories of those acts are now resurfacing. How can one tell if a resurfacing memory was truly repressed or if it is simply fabricated?

In most cases it may impossible to know for sure if a memory was truly repressed or if it is false. Sometimes other witnesses or school and health records can verify the content of a repressed memory. However such sources are often not available, because many of these repressed events -- such as sexual abuse -- are private in nature and not likely to be witnessed or recorded. Through experimental work we know some of the conditions that can give rise to false memories. By scrutinizing the way the events were "recalled" we can get some sense of whether these conditions were present. We know, for example, that people often forget the source of a story. If those helping to elicit a repressed memory make suggestions about what might have happened, these suggestions can become encoded in memory and recalled later as the person's own memories.

How can I improve my memory for tests?

We remember material that we actively organize and think about. As you read a book or listen to a lecture, think actively about the material. Pay attention to the way it is organized, and how various facts relate to each other. The more you can put material into a meaningful framework, the better you will remember it. Then, rehearsing the material several times will ensure that the material stays in your memory. The rehearsals are best spread out over time, rather than crammed into the night before the test.

Some material lends itself to various memory tricks. If the material for your test involves memorizing words (like scientific terms or vocabulary in a foreign language), you can use your imagination to help your memory. Select a common word that sounds like the one you are memorizing. Then imagine the two words in the same scene. If you must remember a sequence of things -- perhaps steps in a process -- you can associate each step with a landmark on a well-known route you travel. While taking the test you can mentally travel the route, remembering each step as you get to each landmark.