A talk with social psychologist Anne Wilson (annewilsonpsychlab.com) about memory and how we define who we are. Topics discussed include: the nature of self; the nature of memory; the fallibility of our memories; the theory of temporal self appraisal (which is about how we experience ourselves as being close to or far away in time from different versions of ourselves); false memories; the role creative storytelling plays in constructing our views of self and the world; and political polarization.
Episode links:
Resources discussed or related:
- Anne Wilson’s professor page, which includes links to her research
- 2000 paper by Wilson and Ross on temporal self-appraisal Autobiographical Memory and Conceptions of Self
- Paper by Wilson and Ward Implicit Theories of Change and Stability Moderate Effects of Subjective Distance on the Remembered Self
- New Yorker article about Elizabeth Loftus and her research on the fallibility of memory
- Article about how “flashbulb memories” are very fallible
- Great podcast episode about split-brain research, including Gazzaniga’s research
- Paper by Wilson and others on polarization