![]() ![]() ![]() One reason that the public has such a negative view of recovered memories is the stereotypical image of those who recover memories, an image that is encouraged by organizations such as the False Memory Syndrome Foundation. Who recovers memories of trauma, and what triggers these memories? All of these questions are important to understanding not just if recovered memories are a real phenomenon but also if the reasons that people doubt the validity of recovered memories are justified. Other questions of interest are the mechanisms by which traumatic memories can be made temporarily inaccessible (addressed here), who recovers traumatic memories, what contexts are traumatic memories recovered under, and what types of trauma do traumatic memories often involve. The main question is how often this occurs, and the second major question is what can increase the risk of traumatic memories being false. For reputable researchers of trauma, there is no debate over if genuine traumatic memories can be (or appear to be) repressed and then recovered. ![]() Many trauma survivors report having had no conscious access to memories of their trauma for a period of time (DePrince et al., 2012 Herman & Harvey, 1997), and many more report that they were temporarily unable to recall specific details about their trauma or specific traumatic instances (Beere, 2009 Herman & Harvey, 1997 Nijenhuis, Hart, & Steele, 2010). It is true that some researchers doubt that traumatic memories can be completely repressed outside of a few rare cases (Patihis and Pendergrast, 2018a), but this does not mean that they deny that traumatic memories can be temporarily forgotten and later more or less accurately remembered (Connolly & Read, 2007 Lindsay & Read, 1995 Loftus, 1993 Patihis & Pendergrast, 2018b). However, many discussions about repressed memories rely on outdated arguments and assumptions. It is difficult to learn of repressed memories without learning of the controversy surrounding their existence and validity. ![]()
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