Retractors of false memories: The evolution of pseudo-memories

1995 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 411-435 ◽  
Author(s):  
Harold I. Lief ◽  
Janet Fetkewicz
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
False Memory ◽  
Subjective Experience ◽  
Telephone Interview ◽  
Family Members ◽  
False Memories ◽  
False Memory Syndrome ◽  
Reality Testing ◽  
Factors Influencing ◽  
Study Population

The formation of pseudomemories and the subsequent methods used by subjects to eventually distinguish between true and false memories are the primary foci of this study. A survey instrument was distributed to 100 “retractors” after an initial telephone interview with False Memory Syndrome Foundation (FMSF) staff. Forty respondents (40% of the subjects) who returned the questionnaire comprise our study population. The survey inquired about personal and family information, events surrounding the subject's accusations of sexual abuse, childhood history, and the subject's reflections on his or her experience. The process of the development of pseudomemories is highlighted. Subjects also described their feelings and experiences in open-ended questions, including their subjective experience as memories evolved, factors influencing thoughts, feelings and doubts, the process of questioning memories, the process of restoring relationships with family members, and uncertainties about views of memories currently held. We focus on the evolution of pseudomemories, especially the influence of the therapist; we explore the nature of therapy, one that makes an ill patient much worse and that eventually becomes so onerous that patients who still have some remaining reality-testing flee from therapy.

Suits by adults for childhood sexual abuse: Legal origins of the “repressed memory” controversy

1996 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 207-228 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary R. Williams
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Childhood Sexual Abuse ◽  
False Memory ◽  
Alternative Explanation ◽  
False Memories ◽  
Repressed Memory ◽  
False Memory Syndrome ◽  
Legal Origins ◽  
Civil Lawsuits

In the last decade there has been a proliferation of civil lawsuits by adults claiming to be survivors of childhood sexual abuse (CSA). Many states have permitted such suits to go forward by applying some form of “delayed discovery of injury” exception to the statute of limitations. Advocates for those claiming to have been falsely accused have generated a new concept—“false memory syndrome”—as an alternative explanation for delayed memories of CSA. Its proponents claim that there is an epidemic of therapy-induced “false memories” of CSA. Psychotherapists and the profession as a whole have become involved in a heated controversy, whose substance as well as intensity is to a large extent litigation driven. To understand the controversy and get a handle on its future, it is important to examine its legal origins, history and context.

False memory syndrome – balancing the evidence for and against

1998 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 64-67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Critchlow
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
False Memory ◽  
False Memories ◽  
Good Evidence ◽  
Traumatic Memory ◽  
False Memory Syndrome ◽  
Subsequent Recall ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Intense Debate

AbstractThe false memory syndrome has been the subject of recent intense debate. Can false memories of child sexual abuse be engendered in the minds of susceptible individuals by well meaning therapists? This paper examines the evidence for false memories. Memory in childhood and adults is discussed, and the different processes involved in traumatic memory are emphasised. Evidence for amnesia following sexual abuse with subsequent recall is presented.It is important to weigh carefullythe evidence both for and against the false memory syndrome. Good evidence for false memories exists, but conversely amnesia and subsequent recall of sexual abuse undoubtedly occur. The principle of primum non nocere is particularly important in guiding therapeutic endeavours.

False memories, false innocence belief syndrome (FIBS) and ‘mind control’

2017 ◽  
Vol 41 (S1) ◽  
pp. S587-S587
Author(s):  
R. Kurz
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
False Memory ◽  
Mental Health Professionals ◽  
Full Range ◽  
False Memories ◽  
False Memory Syndrome ◽  
Mind Control ◽  
Vested Interests ◽  
Competing Interest

IntroductionChild sexual abuse allegations are extremely tricky matters to deal with as situations can range from ritual violence at one extreme to complete fabrication by vested interests at the other. A level headed approach is required that does not fall into the trap of categorizing all early childhood memories as ‘false memories’ while also being alert to possible ‘mind control’ coaching of false allegations.ObjectivesThe presentation covers the origins of the false memory syndrome group and the implantation of false memories that is seemingly practiced by vested interests.AimsChild custody and criminal cases are frequently decided based on testimony of mental health professionals who routinely appear to be poorly informed and blatantly biased.MethodsA review of articles in the BPS publication ‘The Psychologist’ uncovered a large amount of materials written by advocates of the BFMS prompting further research.ResultsThere appears to be a multitude of articles written by BFMS associates in The Psychologist. Furthermore, instances of BPS ‘censorship’ are disconcerting. On top of this, concerns have been raised in the US about the ethics of Elizabeth Loftus–the academic ‘darling’ of the false memory movement. Finally cases have come to light where false memories were seemingly implanted by vested interests to ‘snatch’ children into authority care.ConclusionsThe mine field of child sexual abuse needs to be tackled with an even-handed manner considering the full range of possibilities in assessment.Disclosure of interestThe author has not supplied his/her declaration of competing interest.

False Memory Syndrome: A Feminist Philosophical Approach

Hypatia ◽  
1997 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-50 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shelley M. Park
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Childhood Sexual Abuse ◽  
False Memory ◽  
False Memories ◽  
Current Debate ◽  
Feminist Philosophy ◽  
Philosophical Approach ◽  
False Memory Syndrome ◽  
Political Commitments

In this essay, I attempt to outline a feminist philosophical approach to the current debate concerning (allegedly) false memories of childhood sexual abuse. Bringing the voices of feminist philosophers to bear on this issue highlights the implicit and sometimes questionable epistemological, metaphysical, and ethical-political commitments of some therapists and scientists involved in these debates. It also illuminates some current debates in and about feminist philosophy.

scholarly journals Politics, Responsibility and Adult Victims of Childhood Sexual Abuse

2007 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 72-83 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jo Woodiwiss
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Childhood Sexual Abuse ◽  
False Memory ◽  
The Self ◽  
Recovered Memory ◽  
False Memory Syndrome ◽  
The Past ◽  
Hidden Knowledge ◽  
Adult Lives ◽  
Material Conditions

This paper will explore ways in which self identified survivors of childhood sexual abuse and false memory syndrome appropriate therapeutic discourses which both encourage women to hold themselves responsible for their own unhappiness and provide a way to alleviate that responsibility. Although I look critically at women's engagement with abuse narratives the intention is not to enter the ‘recovered memory wars’ but rather to explore the consequences of locating adult victims of childhood sexual abuse within a therapeutic rather than a political framework. Within this therapeutic culture priority is given to self-actualisation and personal fulfilment and the self is increasingly seen as a project to be worked on. A pervasive theme within the therapeutic literature is a particular linkage between women's ‘inferiority’ and their oppression. Women are not only shown an array of problems from which they suffer together with self-improving solutions but are encouraged to seek the ‘hidden’ causes of these problems in the past and to probe further and further back rather than look to the material conditions of their adult lives for explanations. Drawing on interview material I will look at how women invest in discourses which provide an explanation for hidden knowledge of abuse and may offer a way to alleviate responsibility but which also encourage them to (re)construct themselves as sick, damaged and ultimately responsible for their own unhappiness.

Allegations of child sexual abuse: delayed reporting and false memory

1995 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 103-106 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Byrne ◽  
Noel Sheppard
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
Natural History ◽  
Special Reference ◽  
False Memory ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
Case Histories ◽  
False Memory Syndrome ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Eleven Case

AbstractEleven case histories, including diagnoses and outcome, are presented of patients who made, or were the subject of, allegations of sexual abuse, but where these allegations were subsequently withdrawn or disproved. How such situations come about is discussed, with special reference to the false memory syndrome, a term made popular by recent media coverage. Given the complexity of this ‘syndrome’, an argument is put forward that diagnostic guidelines be established so that direct studies of its natural history and treatments may be undertaken.

A Field Study of “False Memory Syndrome”: Construct Validity and Incidence

1996 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 299-338 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wendy E. Hovdestad ◽  
Connie M. Kristiansen
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
False Memory ◽  
Interpersonal Relationships ◽  
Discriminant Validity ◽  
Community Sample ◽  
Recovered Memory ◽  
Trauma Symptoms ◽  
Recovered Memories ◽  
False Memory Syndrome ◽  
Using Data

False memory syndrome (FMS) is described as a serious form of psychopathology characterized by strongly believed pseudomemories of childhood sexual abuse. A literature review revealed four clusters of symptoms underlying the syndrome regarding victims' belief in their memories of abuse and their identity as survivors, their current interpersonal relationships, their trauma symptoms across the lifespan, and the characteristics of their therapy experiences. The validity of these clusters was examined using data from a community sample of 113 women who identified themselves as survivors of girlhood sexual abuse. Examining the discriminant validity of these criteria revealed that participants who had recovered memories of their abuse (n = 51), and who could therefore potentially have FMS, generally did not differ from participants with continuous memories (n = 49) on indicators of these criteria. Correlational analyses also indicated that these criteria typically failed to converge. Further, despite frequent claims that FMS is occurring in epidemic proportions, only 3.9%-13.6% of the women with a recovered memory satisfied the diagnostic criteria, and women with continuous memories were equally unlikely to meet these criteria. The implications of these findings for FMS theory and the delayed-memory debate more generally are discussed.

False memory syndrome vs. total repression

1995 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 283-293 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stan Abrams
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Childhood Sexual Abuse ◽  
False Memory ◽  
Mental Health Field ◽  
Recovered Memories ◽  
Repressed Memories ◽  
False Memory Syndrome ◽  
Health Field

A major debate exists within the mental health field regarding the authenticity of recovered repressed memories involving childhood sexual abuse. Since it is difficult to document events that occurred years ago, a study was conducted in which polygraphy was utilized to test alleged child abusers accused on the basis of recovered memories versus those abusers whose purported victims experienced no repression. The former group was found to be deceptive in only 4% of the cases, in contrast to 78% for the latter subjects. These findings strongly argue against the validity of the concept of repression for acts that might have persisted for years.

The organised abuse of children in rural England: The response of Social Services, Part One

1994 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 37-40
Author(s):  
Chris Goddard
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Child Abuse ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Child Protection ◽  
False Memories ◽  
False Memory Syndrome ◽  
Professional Journals ◽  
Extensive Coverage ◽  
The World ◽  
Rural England

There are a number of controversies raging in the world of child protection. Three in particular have attracted attention in recent months. There is the issue of the ‘repressed’ or ‘false’ memories of adults recalling sexual abuse in childhood. This topic has received extensive coverage in professional journals (see, for example, Neale, 1994 for a summary) and in the broader media (Wyndham, 1994).Once again, the very label given to the problem defines the debate, as indeed has been the case since modern interest in child abuse was prompted by Kempe's (1962) work. It is interesting to note that ‘false memory syndrome’ is now the term used by some to counter claims of abuse in childhood. As Neale points out (1994:17) the term has ‘no medical validity, but the use of the word ‘syndrome’ perhaps suggests such a feature.

Intensity of Amnesia during Hypnosis is Positively Correlated with Estimated Prevalence of Sexual Abuse and Alien Abductions: Implications for the False Memory Syndrome

1993 ◽  
Vol 77 (3) ◽  
pp. 895-898 ◽  
Author(s):  
Terri-Lynn Dittburner ◽  
M. A. Persinger
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
False Memory ◽  
Skin Lesions ◽  
False Memory Syndrome ◽  
Dichotic Listening Task ◽  
Hypnotic Induction ◽  
History Of ◽  
Alien Abduction ◽  
Positive Correlations ◽  
Listening Task

20 normal young women listened to an ambiguous story concerning a young boy who experienced fear, odd smells, and a smothering sensation during the night and skin lesions the next morning. After the Hypnotic Induction Profile (HIP) had been established, they were asked to estimate either the percentage prevalence of childhood sexual abuse or alien abduction in the general population. There were moderate (0.50) positive correlations between the subjects' estimates of prevalence and the amount of amnesia (“lost time”) and indices of right-hemispheric anomalies (history of sensed presence and left-ear suppressions during a dichotic-listening task). Relevance of observations to formation of the False Memory Syndrome and to the development of nonpsychotic delusions is discussed.

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