Lost in the Mall experiment

The "Lost in the Mall" experiment, conducted by psychologist Elizabeth Loftus, explored how easily people can develop false memories. In the study, participants were asked to recall specific childhood events, including an event where they supposedly got lost in a mall. Many participants, despite the event never having happened, later described vivid memories of it, influenced by suggestions and prompts. This experiment showed that our memories are not always accurate and can be influenced by external information, highlighting the reliability issues surrounding memory, especially in legal contexts, such as eyewitness testimonies.