Department of Psychology, University of Münster, Fliednerstr. 21, 48149, Münster, Germany.
Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
Sci Rep. 2022 May 11;12(1):7725. doi: 10.1038/s41598-022-11749-w.
Ample evidence shows that post-encoding misinformation from others can induce false memories. Here, we demonstrate in two experiments a new, tacit form of socially generated false memories, resulting from interpersonal co-monitoring at encoding without communication of misinformation. Pairs of participants jointly viewed semantically coherent word lists, presented successively in blue, green, or red letters. Each individual was instructed to memorize words presented in one of the colors. One color remained unassigned (control condition). Participants (total N = 113) reported more false memories for non-presented words (lures) semantically related to partner-assigned than to control lists, although both list types were equally irrelevant to their own task. Notably, this effect also persisted for particularly rich memories. These findings show for the first time that social induction of false memories, even subjectively rich ones, does not necessarily require communication of deceptive information. This has important implications both theoretically and practically (e.g., in forensic contexts).
充分的证据表明，来自他人的编码后错误信息会引起错误记忆。在这里，我们通过两个实验证明了一种新的、隐性的社会产生的错误记忆形式，这种形式源于编码时的人际共同监测，而没有错误信息的交流。成对的参与者共同观看语义连贯的单词列表，按蓝色、绿色或红色字母依次呈现。每个人都被指示记住呈现的一种颜色的单词。一种颜色未被分配（对照条件）。参与者（总数 N=113）报告对与伙伴分配的相关的非呈现单词（诱饵）有更多的错误记忆，而不是对照列表，尽管这两种列表类型与他们自己的任务同样无关。值得注意的是，这种效应在特别丰富的记忆中仍然存在。这些发现首次表明，错误记忆的社会诱导，即使是主观上丰富的，也不一定需要欺骗性信息的交流。这在理论和实践上都有重要意义（例如，在法医环境中）。
