![]() ![]() One of the primary concerns of skeptics is that “repressed-memory testimony” may be used in court to indict someone. Repressed-Memory Testimony Fuels Controversy On the other hand, less than 30% of research psychologists believe in the validity of repressed memories. They also gathered data that shows the widespread acceptance of repressed memories as real among the general public. Their responses revealed that though skepticism regarding repressed memories has increased in the past 20 years for “mainstream psychotherapists and clinical psychologists,” approximately 60 to 80% of the clinicians, psychoanalysts, and therapists who responded to the survey believe that memories of trauma are often repressed and can be retrieved in therapy. The study conducted by Patihis and colleagues involved an online survey of practicing clinicians, psychotherapists, research psychologists, and alternative therapists. One of the researchers, Lawrence Patihis of the University of California, Irvine, said in a press release issued by the Association for Psychological Science (2013), “Whether repressed memories are accurate or not, and whether they should be pursued by therapists, or not, is probably the single most practically important topic in clinical psychology since the days of Freud and the hypnotists who came before him.” Researchers tend to be more hesitant to accept the concept of repression as fact due to the lack of scientific evidence in support of it (Association for Psychological Science, 2013).įindings reported recently in Psychological Science suggest that this controversy remains just as prevalent today, and that skepticism has actually increased with time. This became especially heated during what became known as the “memory wars” of the 1990s.Ĭlinical psychologists and therapists who have witnessed adult clients remembering repressed experiences of childhood abuse argue that the memories are real, vivid, detailed, and reliable. However, over the past few decades, the notion of repressed memories has sparked a great deal of controversy in the mental health field. Several people, mainly women, who recollect memories of abuse 10, 20, 30, or more years after the abuse occurred have sued the perpetrators in court for damages to physical and psychological well-being. The memories may remain locked away for years before surfacing, which typically occurs in a therapeutic setting. Sexual trauma, in particular, is viewed by a number of therapists as being especially susceptible to repression (Loftus, 1993). The presence of hidden truths in the psyche may then manifest in myriad ways in waking life: panic attacks, nightmares, anxiety, depression, sexual dysfunction, and issues with self-esteem, to name a few. Many people believe that when experiences are too painful or difficult to face, they end up tucked into the unseen corners of the unconscious in the form of repressed memories. How to Send Appointment Reminders that Work.Rules and Ethics of Online Therapy for Therapists.Practice Management Software for Therapists.
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