The idea that traumatized people, especially the victims of child sexual abuse, deliberately repress horrific memories goes all the way back to the 19th century and the theories of Sigmund Freud himself.
But now some experts are saying the evidence points the other way.
Professor Grant Devilly, from Griffith University's Psychological Health research unit, says the memory usually works in the opposite way, with traumatized people reliving experiences they would rather forget.
"It's the opposite. They wish they couldn't think about it," he said.
In a briefing to the US Supreme Court, Professor Richard McNally from Harvard University described the theory of repressed memory as "the most pernicious bit of folklore ever to infect psychology and psychiatry".
No comments:
Post a Comment