Abstract
How do you know that something is true? Is it because you learned it in school? Is it because you heard it before? Our brains can remember a lot of information, but we do not always use this information when deciding what is true. Sometimes we use shortcuts like, “Have I heard this before?” rather than thinking about what we know. These shortcuts can lead us to make mistakes—like thinking that a false statement is true just because you have heard it many times. Researchers call this the illusory truth effect. People are more likely to believe information they have heard multiple times. This happens even when people should know that what they are hearing is wrong! They already have the correct information stored in memory, but repetition makes them think that false information is true. In this article, we discuss why this happens, and how this might affect kids like you!
Highlights
How do you know that something is true? Is it because you learned it in school? Is it because you heard it before? Our brains can remember a lot of information, but we do not always use this information when deciding what is true
It is really helpful for people to have such strong memory systems
People who hear a false statement like “Leopards are the fastest land animal” multiple times are more likely to think that it is true than people who hear this statement only once [ ]
Summary
Sometimes we use shortcuts like, “Have I heard this before?” rather than thinking about what we know. These shortcuts can lead us to make mistakes—like thinking that a false statement is true just because you have heard it many times. Researchers call this the illusory truth e ect. People are more likely to believe information they have heard multiple times. This happens even when people should know that what they are hearing is wrong!
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