Chapter 8: Lost in the Mall
The False Memory Experiment
Opening Skinner's Box
Lauren Slater
Summary: Slater discusses experiments regarding memory. She presents part of the life of psychologist Elizabeth Loftus, how spent much of her career trying to demonstrate that fake memories can be created by suggestion. She wanted to prove this idea scientifically in order to help individuals she thought may be innocent about crimes that were supposedly committed years ago, and their accusations insisted they had just remembered about the event.
Discussion: I really don't buy the idea that you can forget some event if it was really traumatic, unless you are like really, really young. However, I don't understand how easily they claim that memories can be suggested and believed as if they were true, and how people would elaborate in the 'memories' as if they were true. If its not easy to forget, it should not be easy to manipulated into believing a made up story.
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