Imagination inflation

Imagination inflation is a type of memory distortion that occurs when imagining an event that never happened increases confidence in the memory of the event.[1]

Several factors have been demonstrated to increase the imagination inflation effect. Imagining a false event increases familiarity, which may cause people to mistake this as evidence that they have experienced the event.[2][3] Imagination inflation could also be the result of source confusion or source monitoring errors. When imagining a false event, people generate information about the event that is often stored in their memory. Later, they might remember the content of the memory but not its source and mistakenly attribute the recalled information to a real experience.[2]

This effect is relevant to the study of memory and cognition, particularly false memory. Imagination inflation often occurs during attempts to retrieve repressed memories (i.e. via recovered memory therapy) and may lead to the development of false or distorted memories.[2] In criminal justice, imagination inflation is tied to false confessions because police interrogation practices involving suspects to imagine committing or planning the crime in question.[1][4]

  1. ^ a b Garry, Maryanne; Manning, Charles G., Loftus, Elizabeth F., Sherman, Steven J (1996). "Imagination inflation: imagining a childhood event inflates confidence that it occurred". Psychonomic Bulletin & Review. 3 (2): 208–214. doi:10.3758/bf03212420. PMID 24213869.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. ^ a b c Garry, Maryanne; Polaschek, Devon L.L. (2000). "Imagination and memory". Current Directions in Psychological Science. 9 (1): 6–10. doi:10.1111/1467-8721.00048. S2CID 145741938.
  3. ^ Loftus, Elizabeth F. (2001). "Imagining the past". The Psychologist. 14 (11): 584–587. ProQuest 619639001.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference false was invoked but never defined (see the help page).