Repressed Memory Versus False Memory - Trauma And Dissociation

Some psychologists believe sexual abuse can be so psychologically traumatic that the victim dissociates from full awareness of the horrible experience. In other words, dissociation is the mind's defense mechanism against the trauma. Other scientists disagree, however. For example, Daniel L. Schacter (Searching for Memory: The Brain, the Mind, and the Past, New York, NY: Basic Books, 1996) questioned how a patient could dissociate so much of her past, and yet function in society for years without her problems being obvious in her behavior before she consults a therapist. Schacter argued that patients who have really experienced many episodes of dissociation should also have a documented history of the manifestations of such disorder before ever having recovered repressed memories of long-term abuse.

Dissociative Amnesia for Childhood Abuse Memories

According to James A. Chu, Lisa M. Frey, Barbara L. Ganzel, and Julia A. Matthews, although research has shown that memories can be inaccurate and can be influenced by outside factors such as overt suggestions, most studies show that memory tends to be accurate when it comes to remembering the core elements of important events ("Memories of Childhood Abuse: Dissociation, Amnesia, and Corroboration," American Journal of Psychiatry, vol. 156, no. 5, May 1999). The authors conducted a study of ninety female patients ages eighteen to sixty who were undergoing treatment in a psychiatric hospital. Dissociative amnesia, discussed in this study, is a type of dissociation, or dissociative disorder.

A large proportion of patients reported childhood abuse: 83% experienced physical abuse, 82% were victims of sexual abuse, and 71% witnessed domestic violence. Those who had a history of any kind of abuse reported experiencing partial or complete amnesia. The occurrence of physical and sexual abuse at an early age accounted for a higher level of amnesia.

Contrary to the popular belief that recovered memory of childhood abuse typically occurs under psychotherapy or hypnosis, most of the patients who suffered complete amnesia for their physical and sexual abuse indicated first recalling the abuse when they were at home and alone. Most patients did not recover memory of childhood abuse as a result of suggestions during therapy. Just one or two participants (for each of the three types of abuse) reported first memory of abuse while in a therapy session. Nearly half (48% for physical abuse and 45% for sexual abuse) were not undergoing psychological counseling or treatment when they first remembered the abuse.

Critics of recovered memories have noted the lack of corroboration (confirmation that the abuse really occurred) in many instances of recovered memories. In this study, the researchers found that, among patients who tried to corroborate their abuse, more than half found physical evidence such as medical records. Nearly nine of ten of those who suffered sexual abuse found verbal validation of such abuse.