A inflação mnésica pela imaginação: Características do fenómeno e processos associados

Abstract

There are countless studies on human memory that have demonstrated its reconstructive nature and thus its fallibility. However, the need to explore the factors that give rise to this reconstructive nature remains. Imagination is one such factor. Some studies have shown that the imagination of fictitious episodes (which never happened) leads participants in a trend to increase confidence about the occurrence of these episodes. This phenomenon is called imagination inflation. In this paper we explain what is the imagination inflation, how it has been studied, the leverage that personal characteristics harness, and what are the implications the findings in this area have on some clinical treatment approaches. At the end of the paper we discuss the cognitive processes that seem to be associated with the phenomenon, such as the source monitoring and familiarity.