Study Overview
What was the aim of Loftus & Pickrell’s (1995) study?
To investigate if false memories could be implanted.
What does the "T" in TEACUP stand for, and how does it apply to the study?
Testability—memories could be verified using family input.
What percentage of participants recalled the false memory?
About 25%.
How did researchers introduce a false memory?
They added a fake story about being lost in a mall to three real childhood events.
How does this study challenge Yuille & Cutshall (1986)?
Unlike Yuille & Cutshall, this study showed that misleading information CAN affect memory.
How did participants describe the false memory compared to real ones?
They were less confident and wrote fewer details about it.
How were participants asked to recall the events?
They wrote details about all events and were interviewed twice over 1-2 weeks
What is a weakness of the study’s construct validity?
The artificial setting may not reflect real memory formation. (low ecological validity)
In the applications portion of our TEACUP evaluation- What do we say this study can help us understand in the real world?
It helps understand false memories in eyewitness testimony and therapy.
What made the false memory seem believable?
It was mixed with real memories provided by family members.
We said this study could contain Demand Characteristics, what is that?
Participants may have guessed what researchers wanted.
What does "predictive validity" mean in this study?
The findings can be replicated, and this shows false memories are likely to form under similar conditions.