NCJ Number
203661
Editor(s)
Susan Roth Ph.D.,
Matthew J. Friedman M.D.
Date Published
2002
Length
27 pages
Annotation
This document discusses the topic of memories of childhood trauma, particularly childhood abuse.
Abstract
Childhood trauma involving interpersonal violence occurs frequently and plays an important role in later adult maladaptive functioning. Accumulated scientific findings about the prevalence of childhood trauma and its psychological consequences are described in the first section. Scientific evidence for the forgetting of childhood traumatic events, for the delayed recall of traumatic events after a period of forgetting, and for “false memories” of childhood trauma is presented in the second section. The third section outlines what cognitive psychologists and neurobiologists understand about human memory, based on recent scientific discoveries, and the implications of this research for an understanding of traumatic memories in general, and forgetting and delayed recall of traumatic events in particular. The fourth and fifth sections focus on how to best apply this current knowledge in clinical and forensic practice with trauma survivors. Gaps in the knowledge are also identified. While there is some evidence that recovered memories of childhood abuse can be as accurate as never-forgotten memories of childhood abuse, there is also evidence that memory is reconstructive and imperfect. There is evidence that people can make very glaring errors in memory, that people are suggestible under some circumstances to social influence or persuasion when reporting memories for past events and that at least under some circumstances inaccurate memories can be strongly believed and convincingly described. While traumatic memories may be different than ordinary memories, there is currently not conclusive scientific consensus on this issue. It is not currently known how traumatic memories are forgotten or later recovered. Trauma-focused approaches to assessment and treatment have also promoted a sophisticated articulation of the purpose, process, and standards of care. There is no standard procedure for establishing the accuracy of recovered memories in individual cases and in clinical practice, it is up to the patient to come to his or her own conclusions about whether he or she was previously traumatized.