Although sometimes debated, our results imply that false memories for repeated events can be implanted and are perhaps even easier to induce than false memories for single events

Calado, Bruna, Timothy J. Luke, Deb Connolly, Sara Landström, and Henry Otgaar. 2020. “Implanting False Autobiographical Memories for Repeated Events.” PsyArXiv. April 6. doi:10.31234/osf.io/5yw6z

Abstract: People who falsely remember to be sexually abused as a child sometimes report memories of repeated abuse. Research to date, however, has exclusively focused on the implantation of false memories for single events. We investigated false memory formation for repeated autobiographical experiences using an adapted false memory implantation paradigm. We predicted that false memories for repeated events would be harder to implant compared to false memories for single events. We assigned students to one of three implantation conditions: two focused on the implantation of repeated events and another focused on the implantation of single events. Participants underwent three interview sessions with a 1-week interval. Surprisingly, false memories for repeated events were more easily implanted than false memories for single events. Although sometimes debated, our results imply that false memories for repeated events can be implanted and are perhaps even easier to induce than false memories for single events