APS
2026 APS Annual Convention · 2026
Do We Really Forget Our Moral Transgressions? the Fluency of Autobiographical Memories for Moral Events
- Alessandro Messina
University of Aarhus, centre on Autobiographical Memory Research - Maria Cristina Buzzo
Aarhus University - Dorthe Berntsen
Aarhus University
Abstract
We introduced a novel Moral Memory Fluency Task to test longstanding claims that people forget their own moral transgressions. Across five studies, we found a strikingly consistent pattern of retrieval and no evidence for unethical amnesia effects, indicating that morally significant events remain available rather than being selectively repressed.