Essay On Eidetic Memory

Ayotunde Ifaturoti

Human Behavior

Pd. 5

3/28/14

Eidetic Memory

Imagine having the ability to take a screenshot of what one sees. It sounds like photographic memory, that superhuman ability one often hears about on Dateline, movies, and shows. As much as the idea of saving everything one has ever perceived, storing it away like a file in a cabinet, and recalling it at a moment’s notice sounds amazing, it just isn’t plausible. Despite the sensationalism and myth surrounding it, photographic memory is not real. This misconception is often muddled with eidetic memory. Eidetic memory is the ability to recall certain images in great detail for a certain amount of time. After viewing a picture, a person with eidetic memory will retain the image in his or her mind, as if it is still present, floating in space (Berry, 2014). The “catch” about eidetic memory is that these “snapshots” are not stored forever. They eventually fade over time along with the actual ability itself. In 1964, Haber and Haber, two psychologists, conducted a series of studies on eidetic memory and found a correlation between it and age. In their experiments, children were exposed to a detailed picture on an easel for approximately thirty seconds. When the picture was taken away, the children scanned the blank easel in order to recall the image. They described the image in present tense, as if it was still there (Arnaudo, 2008). Haber and Haber found that although it is relatively rare, eidetic memory occurred more in children than adults. But upon further research, it appears there is an explanation to its gradual dissipation as one matures. Eidetic memory is more commonly found in children, because as children grow, their brains develop linguistically, functionally...

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...theory takes credence, because one provides a thoughtful and logical explanation as to why children rely less and less on visual imagery to build their memory. There is still a lot to be learned about the nature of the brain and how it matures. Even though a myriad of studies have been done, there are still inconclusive matters. One question remains: which of the theories previously explained is most responsible for the gradual degradation of eidetic memory over time? That is a probing question that might not be concretely answered by today’s research and studies. Still, eidetic memory is a puzzling phenomenon that naturally evokes curiosity. It’s topic many don’t understand, because of the misconceptions surrounding it. But hopefully, upon further research and advances in brain-scanning technology, all of society will come to understand the nature of it thoroughly.