My Memory Lane

What are the chances the children take in Texas will develope false memories of abuse?

Children are very susceptible to false memories. This have been demonstrated in various experiments. Children discribe in detail situations which never happened, actually believing they did. How can we be sure these children aren't being fed false memories?

Public Comments

1. Good question! To answer your last question first: We can't be sure they are not fed false memories. What are the chances these kids will develop false memories? I am a state-certified sexual abuse interviewer and counselor. I directed the first state-wide child abuse emergency reporting program in the country. And I would say that it is likely some of these kids WILL develop false memories of abuse. How many? No one knows. We used to say about abuse, especially sexual abuse, that "children don't lie about these things." Now we know that children DO lie, and DO tell untrue stories about abuse. This can get adults into a whole lot of trouble, as a social work system, child protection system, and judicial system all conspire to "believe the poor child...a child would not lie about this!" So an adult can go to prison for something he DID NOT DO (we know now) and may have to spend the rest of his/her life under the shadow of a false accusation. Meanwhile, many of the children who lie don't even know they lied or were encouraged to lie by overly-enthusiastic questioners. It's actually a pretty rotten system, with a lot left over from the Victorian ear of sexual repression, and from Freud's horrible legacy that sex is everything.