What causes the Mandela Effect? Is it simply a case of unreliable memory? Back in 2022, researchers at the University of Chicago had the same questions, so conducted the most comprehensive study on the Mandela Effect to date. Many of us in the Mandela Effect community may have read summaries of the research, but the truly intriguing insight is buried in the details of the full paper 📄

In this video, I’ll share the top 5 findings that stood out from this groundbreaking research, led by experts in memory and perception. We’ll explore whether this study helps solidify the Mandela Effect as an explainable false memory phenomenon… or whether there’s even more mystery than meets the eye 🤔

📊 Key Findings from the Study:
1. Common Patterns of Misremembering: Discover whether certain logos and characters are more susceptible to the Mandela Effect than others
2. Consistency in False Memories: Learn how people often misremember the same details, providing insight into the collective memory phenomenon
3. Challenging Schema Theory: Explore why traditional explanations like schema theory fall short in explaining the Mandela Effect
4. Resistance to Correction: Unpack findings that show how false memories prevail even after exposure to accurate information
5. Cultural Exposure and Memory: Investigate how our cultural interactions with icons over time shape our memories

🤔 Questions Left Unanswered:
While the research offers fascinating insights, it also raises more questions! Why do certain items elicit the Mandela Effect, and not others? Why are false memories so strangely consistent among large groups of people? How do we account for anchor memories?

✍️ What do you think? Are there other ways to explain the Mandela Effect through a psychological lens? Or are we looking at a truly unexplainable phenomenon, more of a Glitch in the Matrix, or the result of changing timelines?

Have you been affected by a visual Mandela Effect? The study focussed on the Fruit of the Loom cornucopia, the Monopoly Man’s monocle, Curious George’s tail, Pikachu’s tail, and the Volkswagen logo, as their examples of common false memories related to popular visual icons–but there are definitely more out there!

#mandelaeffect #falsememories #collectivememory #memory #psychology

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Chapters
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00:00 Introduction
00:52 Background to the Study
01:35 1 – Common Patterns of Misremembering
02:50 2 – Consistency in False Memories
04:12 3 – Challenging Schema Theory
05:17 4 – Resistance to Correction
06:27 5 – Cultural Exposure and Memory
08:09 Takeaways from the Research
09:37 Unanswered Questions

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Attributions
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Study:
Prasad, D., & Bainbridge, W. A. (2022). The Visual Mandela Effect as Evidence for Shared and Specific False Memories Across People. Psychological science, 33(12), 1971–1988. https://doi.org/10.1177/09567976221108944

Study data:
Prasad, D., & Bainbridge, W. A. (2022, May 25). The Visual Mandela Effect: Evidence for Shared Specific False Memories. Retrieved from osf.io/7cmwf

Music:
I Knew a Guy by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1100199
Artist: http://incompetech.com/