The article by Henry L. Roediger III and Kathleen B. McDermott explores the phenomenon of false memory, particularly in the context of list learning paradigms. Two experiments were conducted to investigate false recall and false recognition of non-presented words. In Experiment 1, subjects studied lists of 12 words, each associated with a non-presented word. The results showed that the non-presented words were recalled at a rate of 40% and were later recognized with high confidence. Experiment 2 expanded the list length to 15 words and found a false recall rate of 55%. Both experiments revealed that false recognition rates approached the hit rate, and subjects often reported high confidence in their responses. The act of recall enhanced both accurate and false recognition. The findings suggest that people can remember events that never happened, highlighting the powerful illusion of memory. The study also discusses the implications of these results for understanding false memories and their potential causes, such as associative processes and failure in reality monitoring.The article by Henry L. Roediger III and Kathleen B. McDermott explores the phenomenon of false memory, particularly in the context of list learning paradigms. Two experiments were conducted to investigate false recall and false recognition of non-presented words. In Experiment 1, subjects studied lists of 12 words, each associated with a non-presented word. The results showed that the non-presented words were recalled at a rate of 40% and were later recognized with high confidence. Experiment 2 expanded the list length to 15 words and found a false recall rate of 55%. Both experiments revealed that false recognition rates approached the hit rate, and subjects often reported high confidence in their responses. The act of recall enhanced both accurate and false recognition. The findings suggest that people can remember events that never happened, highlighting the powerful illusion of memory. The study also discusses the implications of these results for understanding false memories and their potential causes, such as associative processes and failure in reality monitoring.