Abstract
Observation inflation means that observing an action of another person can lead to false memories of having performed it by oneself. We examined whether the intentional observation is essential for observation inflation. Fifty-four undergraduates participated in the experiment, which consisted of three phases. In the first phase, participants performed 15 actions and read aloud 15 action statements. Secondly, they observed videos which showed another person’s actions. Two weeks later, they took a source-memory test which consists of 60 action statements. In the second phase, participants were required to pay attention to actor’s performance (intentional observation condition), or to background information (non-intentional observation condition). As a result, observation inflation was observed only in the former condition. This suggested that the intentional observation of other person is essential for the effect.
