False Memory Syndrome Essay -- Psychology Disorders Essays

False Memory Syndrome How accurate and reliable is memory? "Studies on memory have shown that we often construct our memories after the fact, that we are susceptible to suggestions from others that will help us fill in the gaps in our memories" (Carroll 6). Prior to reading and discussing the issue of False Memory Syndrome, I hadn’t thought much about the topic. Maybe a person who had experienced this would be more educated. I did however find it very interesting to research and my beliefs or feelings about it now exist and will be shared at a later time. The purpose of this paper is to describe what False Memory Syndrome is and summarize some of the facts that have been gathered through previous research and my own research. The definition of False Memory Syndrome, according to the Random House Compact Unabridged Dictionary, is a "psychological condition in which a person believes that he or she remembers events that have not actually occurred" (Freyd 3). Dr. John F. Kihlstrom, a professor of psychology at Yale University also suggests that FMS is a condition in which a person’s identity and interpersonal relationships are centered around memory of traumatic experience which is objectively false, but in which the person strongly believes. This false memory has been so deeply ingrained that is often interferes with the individuals personality and lifestyle. The disorder will sometimes be destructive because the individual will avoid any type of confrontation that might challenge the memory. This often distracts the person from coping with everyday life challenges (Freyd 2). When a couple was accused by their own daughter for abuse that had never happened, the couple, Pamela and Peter Freyd, formed the False ... ... Works Cited Pendergrast, Mark. Victims of Memory: Sex Abuse Accusations and Shattered Lives. Hinesburg: Upper Access, Inc. Ofshe, Richard and Ethan Watters. Making Monsters: False Memories, Psychotherapy, and Sexual Hysteria. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1994. Carroll, Robert Todd. "Memory." The Skeptics Dictionary. 1998. http://dcn.davis.ca.us/~btcarrol/skeptic/memory.html (01 Dec 2000). Hochman, John, M.D. "Recovered Memory Therapy and False Memory Syndrome." Altedena: Skeptics Society, 1994. http://www.skeptic.com/02.3.hochman- fms.html (20 Nov 2000). Freyd, Pamela, Ph.D. "Frequently Asked Questions." Philadelphia: False Memory Syndrome Foundation. Sept. 1995. http://www.fmsfonline.com/fmsffaq.html. (20 Nov 2000). Freberg, Laura. Stand!. Boulder: Coursewise Publishing Inc., 1999.