Lost in the Mall Study – Flashcards

1995, Elizabeth Loftus and Pickrell

To show that you can plant a false memory and to demonstrate that memory is reconstructive.

24 ( 3 male, 21 female). Ages 18-53. Each student went to find a relative.

Controls, loosely, interview, and survey questionaire. Quasi experiment (lab).

Quantitative (clarity rating, confidence, and how much they remember the next time). Qualitative (descriptions of the memories).

Read 4 memories and wrote what they can remember or else they wrote "I don't remember". 3rd memory was always false. 1-2 weeks after interview 2nd interview 1-2 weeks later. Debrieved-apologized for the horrible deception. 5 still thought that the true event was false.

5 pg. memory booklet, 3 true and 1 false event, 3rd one was always false. Kept description of false event standard, lost, found, by an old man (46) crying.

24 participants (72 true events) 49/72 68% of the true events were remembered, 25% 6/24 believed the false event. Clarity rating (true events= higher). More written about true events than false.

Memories can be reconstructed, malleable. Reliable(replicated).

Control of variables, don't talk to relatives about memories, 2 people for reliability, debrieved, reliable(replicated).

Sample size, heavily female dominated, no variation, 25% - not half of the majority.

Deception, not to use any traumatic events.