Self-referential processing in false recognition and source monitoring: Self-other differences

The present experiment examined the effect of self, close other, and unknown other-references on false recognition and source monitoring in the Deese-Roediger-McDermott (DRM) paradigm. In the present study, participants were shown items with their own name, the name of a closely known other, an unknown other, or alone. Then, they were asked to recognise the items and the reference conditions. The results showed that the items paired with oneself and a closely known other lead to higher true recognition scores compared to other two conditions. Moreover, the source of the items in the self and the close other-reference conditions were more likely to be attributed to the correct sources than the latter two. However, the self and the close other-referenced items increased false recognition and source misattribution scores. The findings indicate that referencing the self and close others may lead to memory illusions via distorting source monitoring abilities.