Question

What is the process of reconstruction of memories? What happens to memories during this process? What does this say about the accuracy and reliability of our memories?

Answer 1

Reconstruction of memories is the process of bringing up old memories and retrieving them. During this process a piece of memory is pulled out of long-term storage to short-term storage.This memory is flexible and it could be altered and modified.

In the process of retrieval, new events could be added based on the retriever's point of view. This might lead to inaccuracies and distortions in recall. The reliability of this reconstructed memory would not be a hundred percent and this is because old memories get combined with new ones.

Another important concept to be taken into consideration here is the concept of Suggestibility. It is the effect of misinformation from external sources that leads to the creation of false memories. Memories are delicate, and suggestions from external souces make them vulnerable to changes.