Max_B
Member
I noticed Stephen Laureys has another paper out, comparing the susceptibility of NDE'rs and Non-NDE'rs to false memories...
False memory susceptibility in coma survivors with and without a near-death experience
False memory susceptibility in coma survivors with and without a near-death experience
A cognitive explanation for NDE may be based on the fact that people experiencing them make erroneous use of their reality monitoring processes, and furthermore that NDEs might (at least in part) be considered as reconstructions based on experiencers’ previous knowledge. This could be an explanation as to why NDE memories are then characterized by a sense of “phenomenological certainty” (Dell’Olio, 2010) from NDErs’ perspective and perceived as “more real than real” (Thonnard et al., 2013). Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate the susceptibility of NDErs to report false memories and illusory recollection using the DRM paradigm, compared to matched volunteers.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the present study showed that NDErs and matched volunteers without a NDE were equally likely to produce false memories, but that NDErs were more likely to associate them with compelling illusory recollection (i.e., a detailed subjective feeling of remembering items that actually were not presented). Moreover, NDErs seem to have more difficulty in later identifying the source of information that was activated as a consequence of intact semantic activation processes in the DRM paradigm. Since the research data on the cognitive processing style in NDErs are still quite sparse, this study constitutes a first approach toward understanding their memory formation and, more generally, their cognitive processing style. Further studies are needed to examine the contents and the origin of this illusory recollection in NDErs. Clarification of mechanisms underlying the recall and encoding of the NDEs should allow us to complete the scientific understanding of the NDE phenomenon and, in general, enhance our understanding of memory.