Orne, M.T. The use and misuse of hypnosis in court. International ...

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Orne 1979 IJCEHhttp://www.sas.upenn.edu/psych/history/orne/orneijceh19794311341.html8 de 23 19/03/2012 17:24changed his story many times, and had not reported many of the details that emerged only duringhypnosis, he will now report his "memories" consistently and with conviction. As a consequence,memories which occurred only during hypnosis may be incorrectly presented in court as though theyrepresented recollections based on original memory traces of the events that actually occurred on the dayin question.321 USE AND MISUSE OF HYPNOSIS IN COURTHypnotic Recall as Part of Basic Memory ProcessesThe idea that one can in hypnosis somehow reactivate original memory traces stems from a widely heldview (especially among lay hypnotists) that memory involves a process analogous to a multi-channelvideotape-recorder inside the head which records all sensory impressions and stores them in their pristineform. Further, there is a belief that while this material cannot ordinarily be brought to consciousness, itcan be accessed through hypnosis; this mechanism is presumed to make possible the phenomenon of ageregression or revivification. Suffice it to say that such a view is counter to any currently accepted theoryof memory and is not supported by scientific data (for reviews, see for example, Hilgard & Loftus, 1979;Jenkins, 1974; Putnam, 1979; Roediger, 1979). As Bartlett (1932) pointed out many years ago, memory iscontinuously changing and is reconstructive as well as reproductive. It is possible that highly traumatic,emotional material that is repressed could be less subject to the kind of continuing changes seen withrelatively neutral material, but even this is doubtful since, as has been pointed out earlier, many of thememories recovered in psychotherapy include material which is not historically accurate.Particularly relevant to our consideration here, however, are the observations discussed by Hilgard andLoftus (1979) indicating that free narrative recall will produce the highest percentage of accurateinformation but also the lowest amount of detail. Conversely, the more an eye-witness is questioned aboutdetails, the more details will be obtained--but with a marked decrease in accuracy. This observation, basedon research with unhypnotized individuals, is virtually certain to apply to hypnotized subjects as well.From Hypnotic Enhancement of Recall to the Creation of MemoryWhile the laws which govern memory inevitably apply to hypnotic recall, it is difficult to disentanglewhich aspects of hypnotically enhanced memories represent accurate recall and which represent fantasiesthat are confabulated to approximate what might have occurred. The extent to which the process ofconfabulation may be stimulated by hypnosis becomes obvious when, instead of being asked to relive aprior event, the subject is given suggestions to experience a future event--about which no memories couldpossibly exist. For instance, in age progression (Kline & Guze, 1951), a subject is given the suggestion thatit is the year 2000 and asked to describe the world around him. Such a suggestion, given to the deeplyhypnotized individual, will lead to a vivid and compelling description of all kinds of new, as yet unseen,scientific marvels. Obviously, the plausibility and the precise nature of322 MARTIN T. ORNEthe subject's description will depend upon his scientific knowledge, his reading, and his intelligence.The same process that allows a hypnotized individual to hallucinate the environment of the year 2000 canalso be involved when he is urged to recall what happened 6 months ago, especially if he lacks the clear,waking memory to permit him to recall details accurately. Unfortunately, such pseudomemories can andoften do become incorporated into the individual's memory store as though they had actually happened. Itis worth noting that this can occur even with bizarre memories such as when people "recall" their pastlives and become convinced that these events really took place or, in other instances, when individualsunder hypnosis remember encounters with flying saucers and become convinced they have actually
Orne 1979 IJCEHhttp://www.sas.upenn.edu/psych/history/orne/orneijceh19794311341.html9 de 23 19/03/2012 17:24communicated with beings from another galaxy. In such instances, the sophisticated listener smiles aboutthe individual's assertions since it is obvious that they represent pseudomemories. Unfortunately, if suchpseudomemories relate to events which occurred 6 months ago and are eminently plausible, there is noway for either the hypnotist or the subject or a jury to distinguish between them and actual recall of whatoccurred.The content of pseudomemories when they are wittingly or unwittingly induced during hypnosis is, ofcourse, not random. If someone has just seen a science fiction film, one can usually recognize elements ofthat film in his description of what is going on about him in the year 2000; similarly, if a witness ishypnotized and has factual information casually gleaned from newspapers or inadvertent comments madeduring prior interrogation or in discussion with others who might have knowledge about the facts, many ofthese bits of knowledge will become incorporated and form the basis of any pseudomemories thatdevelop. Furthermore, if the hypnotist has beliefs about what actually occurred, it is exceedingly difficultfor him to prevent himself from inadvertently guiding the subject's recall so that he will eventually"remember" what he, the hypnotist, believes actually happened.A simple experimental demonstration which I have often carried out is directly relevant to thecircumstances of attempts to hypnotically enhance recall. First, I carefully establish and verify that aparticular subject had in fact gone to bed at midnight on, say February 17, and had arisen at 8 a.m. thefollowing morning. After inducing deep hypnosis, it is suggested that the subject relive the night ofFebruary 17 --getting ready for bed, turning out the light, and going to sleep at midnight. As the subjectrelives being asleep, he is told that it is now 4 a.m. and then is asked whether he has heard the two loudnoises. Following this question (which is in fact a suggestion), a good subject typically responds that thenoises had awakened him. Now instructed to look around and check the323 USE AND MISUSE OF HYPNOSIS IN COURTtime, he may say it is exactly 4:06 a.m. If then asked what he is doing, he may describe some activity suchas going to the window to see what happened or wondering about the noises, forgetting about them, andgoing back to sleep.Still hypnotized, he may relive waking up at 8 a.m. and describe his subsequent day. If, prior to beingawakened, he is told he will be able to remember the events of February 17 as well as all the other thingsthat happened to him in hypnosis, he readily confounds his hypnotic experience with his actual memoryon awakening. If asked about the night of February 17, he will describe going to sleep, and beingawakened by two loud noises. If one inquires at what time these occurred, he will say, "Oh, yes, I lookedat my watch beside my bed. It has a radium dial. It was exactly 4:06 a.m …." The subject will beconvinced that his description about February 17 is accurately reflecting his original memories.The subject's altered memory concerning the night of February 17 will tend to persist (unless suggestionsare given to the contrary) particularly because the subject was asleep at the time and there are nocompeting memories. The more frequently the subject reports the event, the more firmly established thepseudomemory will tend to become. In the experimental demonstration, we are dealing with an essentiallytrivial memory about which the subject has no strong inherent motivations. Nonetheless, the memory iscreated by a leading question, which, however, on casual observation, seems innocuous.In a life situation where hypnosis is used to enhance recall, the same mechanisms which we havepurposively employed in the laboratory to create plausible pseudomemories which the subject accepts ashis own may easily occur inadvertently. It must be emphasized that one is not usually dealing with aconscious effort on the part of the hypnotist to distort a witness's memories; on the contrary, the processby which the hypnotized subject is affected typically occurs outside of the hypnotist's awareness. Thus, ifthe hypnotist knows that two shots have been fired at approximately 4 a.m. on the night of February 17,what seems more natural than to inquire of a witness whether he had heard any loud noises? Further, sinceusually the witness also knows something about the case and the kinds of memories which would be
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