Hostname: page-component-7c8c6479df-r7xzm Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-03-27T19:38:13.677Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

The illusion of repressed memory

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 December 2006

George A. Bonanno*
Affiliation:
Department of Counseling and Clinical Psychology, Teachers College, Columbia University, New York, NY10027

Abstract:

Erdelyi's unified theory includes the idea that traumatic memories can be unconsciously repressed so that they are enduringly inaccessible to deliberate recall. I argue here that clinical evidence for repressed memory is illusory, and illustrate this claim by examining previous studies of putative repressed memories and also recent research on nonverbal behaviors among survivors of childhood sexual abuse.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2006

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)