Misinformation Effect

What is the misinformation effect?

The misinformation effect occurs when misleading information received after an event affects later reports or memory of that event.

In Loftus and Palmer’s experiments (1974), the wording of questions about filmed car accidents affected speed estimates and later reports of broken glass that was absent from the film. This demonstrates a risk from suggestive post-event information; it does not mean every recollection is false or that the original memory is necessarily erased.

Separating firsthand observations from later information is a useful check. Awareness of the effect alone does not guarantee that a person can identify and remove an incorporated suggestion.

The continued influence effect concerns misinformation that still shapes reasoning after it has been corrected.