City Research Online

Abstract

I describe three legal cases in which I acted as a memory expert witness. The cases contain remarkable accounts of memories. Such memories are by no means unusual in legal cases, are often over retention intervals measured in decades, and contain details the specificity of which is highly unusual. For example, recalling from childhood verbatim conversations, clothes worn by self and others, the weather, actions that at the time could not have been understood, details that could not have been known, precise durations and calendar dates, and much more. I show how our scientific understanding of memory can help courts reach more informed decisions about such fantastical "memories" and how these memories constitute data that as researchers we should seek to understand.

Publication Type:	Article
Additional Information:	This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Memory on 07 May 2013, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/09658211.2013.794241.
Publisher Keywords:	Memory; Witness; Abuse; Memory specificity; Music
Subjects:	B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology
Departments:	School of Health & Psychological Sciences > Psychology
Related URLs:	Author
SWORD Depositor:	Symplectic Administrator

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