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Memory Warp
In Memory Warp, Mark Pendergrast sounds a clarion call to stop the ongoing pseudoscience of “repressed memory therapy,” which has destroyed millions of families and continues to do so. In the 1990s, Pendergrast’s book Victims of Memory helped to debunk the repressed memory craze. Now, more than two decades later, he revisits the subject and proves that this form of “therapy” is still widespread, still destroying family relationships and causing false allegations of terrible crimes against innocent parents and caregivers. With meticulous research and captivating writing, Pendergrast brings coverage of this issue up to date.
707 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 22, 2021
8 people are currently reading
229 people want to read
About the author
Mark Pendergrast
25 books87 followersMark Pendergrast was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, the fourth of seven children in a family that valued civil rights, the environment, sailing, reading, and games of chase and charades. He earned a B.A. in English literature from Harvard, taught high school and elementary school, then went back to Simmons College for a masters in library science and worked as an academic librarian—all the while writing freelance articles for newspapers and magazines. In 1991, he began writing books full time, which allows him to follow his rather eclectic interests.
Pendergrast’s books have been published in 15 languages. For God, Country & Coca-Cola was named a notable book of the year by the New York Times, and Discover Magazine chose Mirror Mirror as one of the top science books of the year. Pendergrast has given speeches to professional groups, business associations, and college audiences in the United States, Canada, the U.K., and Germany. He has appeared on dozens of television shows, including the Today Show, CBS This Morning, and CNN, and has been interviewed on over 100 radio programs, including All Things Considered, Marketplace, Morning Edition, and many other public radio shows. He lives in Colchester, Vermont.
Pendergrast’s books have been published in 15 languages. For God, Country & Coca-Cola was named a notable book of the year by the New York Times, and Discover Magazine chose Mirror Mirror as one of the top science books of the year. Pendergrast has given speeches to professional groups, business associations, and college audiences in the United States, Canada, the U.K., and Germany. He has appeared on dozens of television shows, including the Today Show, CBS This Morning, and CNN, and has been interviewed on over 100 radio programs, including All Things Considered, Marketplace, Morning Edition, and many other public radio shows. He lives in Colchester, Vermont.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
January 16, 2018
Great book on a subject everyone needs to know about. This is not just about memory. It is an indictment on the Mental Health system. The Social services and the worst of the lot the Judicial System. Remember this book when you read anything in the media as the result of these systems.
January 24, 2018
How many people have been destroyed by "memories" forced on them by earnest psychologists convinced they are right -- when they aren't. This is a must read -- just in case you know anyone in this situation. Educate yourself!
March 20, 2018
Memory Warp breaches a fundamental topic of the modern age. Unfortunately, Mark Pendergrast proves beyond anything else that he’s probably not the one to offer a solution to it.
At the most basic level, consider the subtitle: How the Myth of Repressed Memory Arose and Refuses to Die. The book is most interested in repressed memories of sexual abuse. It’s not about repressed memory itself, but the effects of accusations. Pendergrast wrote a previous book about this, Victims of Memory. In a lot of ways, Memory Warp most appears to be an update of his earlier work, with one clear omission: in Victims one of his main topics seems to have been that he was himself a victim, accused by his daughters of childhood abuse.
Or something like that. I undertook an admittedly abbreviated attempt to learn more about that, as it bears incredible significance to his perspective and resultant book(s). And yet all I found were vague references, sometimes in the form of complaints, and the only real source was Victims of Memory itself. I found this odd. Now, even the extent of the allegations his daughters made against him are unclear, only that they broke off all communication with him at some point. Reading Victims itself might clear up some of this confusion, I don’t know, but after having read this later volume, I’m not sure if it would prove to be of much benefit. All I know for certain about the matter is that his Wikipedia profile doesn’t mention the matter at all. A misguided ploy in a previous book?
Anyway, this has a major flaw, in that Pendergrast seems pathologically incapable of presenting his case without needlessly hammering his subject. It’s ironic, for a guy who is writing about unethical clinical behavior that badgers unwitting victims into submission. He writes endlessly of this method, but when he finally attempts to explain the basic human instinct that produces such misguided techniques, he glosses over or sensationalizes. And by the time we reach the present...we realize he mostly still cares for the same ‘80s/‘90s period he obsesses over through most of the book.
Look, I’m not saying his conclusions aren’t valid, but that Pendergrast is not capable of selling them. He seems most interested in talking to victims. A book of this kind ought to be of interest most of all as a warning, or to root out its evils in all its related forms. And really, Pendergrast barely scratches the surface, and barely seems aware that he engages in the same behavior patterns he condemns.
He proves that he did a ton of research. But maybe let someone else write the next one. Or get a co-writer. That’s one thing he maybe should have learned from The Courage to Heal, one of those books I used to see in the Self Help section when I worked in a bookstore. “Self Help,” I always thought, sounded like a funny topic to have someone else write about. The real problem, though, seems really to be to expect someone else to solve all your problems. Pendergrast kind of gets that, but obsesses over other matters entirely. That’s this book’s greatest failing.
At the most basic level, consider the subtitle: How the Myth of Repressed Memory Arose and Refuses to Die. The book is most interested in repressed memories of sexual abuse. It’s not about repressed memory itself, but the effects of accusations. Pendergrast wrote a previous book about this, Victims of Memory. In a lot of ways, Memory Warp most appears to be an update of his earlier work, with one clear omission: in Victims one of his main topics seems to have been that he was himself a victim, accused by his daughters of childhood abuse.
Or something like that. I undertook an admittedly abbreviated attempt to learn more about that, as it bears incredible significance to his perspective and resultant book(s). And yet all I found were vague references, sometimes in the form of complaints, and the only real source was Victims of Memory itself. I found this odd. Now, even the extent of the allegations his daughters made against him are unclear, only that they broke off all communication with him at some point. Reading Victims itself might clear up some of this confusion, I don’t know, but after having read this later volume, I’m not sure if it would prove to be of much benefit. All I know for certain about the matter is that his Wikipedia profile doesn’t mention the matter at all. A misguided ploy in a previous book?
Anyway, this has a major flaw, in that Pendergrast seems pathologically incapable of presenting his case without needlessly hammering his subject. It’s ironic, for a guy who is writing about unethical clinical behavior that badgers unwitting victims into submission. He writes endlessly of this method, but when he finally attempts to explain the basic human instinct that produces such misguided techniques, he glosses over or sensationalizes. And by the time we reach the present...we realize he mostly still cares for the same ‘80s/‘90s period he obsesses over through most of the book.
Look, I’m not saying his conclusions aren’t valid, but that Pendergrast is not capable of selling them. He seems most interested in talking to victims. A book of this kind ought to be of interest most of all as a warning, or to root out its evils in all its related forms. And really, Pendergrast barely scratches the surface, and barely seems aware that he engages in the same behavior patterns he condemns.
He proves that he did a ton of research. But maybe let someone else write the next one. Or get a co-writer. That’s one thing he maybe should have learned from The Courage to Heal, one of those books I used to see in the Self Help section when I worked in a bookstore. “Self Help,” I always thought, sounded like a funny topic to have someone else write about. The real problem, though, seems really to be to expect someone else to solve all your problems. Pendergrast kind of gets that, but obsesses over other matters entirely. That’s this book’s greatest failing.
April 25, 2022
First, for anyone looking at ordering this book or Victims of Memory, this is the latest edition to Victims of Memory, albeit with a new name. It also cuts the four chapters of interviews, so if you want those you will have to pick up the other book as well, but I would recommend getting both in that case and reading the updated material in Memory Warp where available.
I have been interested in hypnosis, true crime, memory, and justice for a long time . . . this work lies at the intersection of all of them and discusses the suppressed memory phenomenon. The main question the author looks at is whether the evidence points towards the likelihood that traumatic memories can be repressed only to be remembered years later (typically through therapy) or whether its more likely they are the result of other factors and are more aptly termed false memories.
I realize that not many many people are interested in this topic, but if you are, I would say that this is definitive book on the false memory side of the argument and its very persuasive. It's not the book I would start with, but its a book I would read as part of your research. Rather than go through it point by point, I will recommend some other resources if you are wanting an introduction to the topic before turning to this book.
Indictment is a fictionalized version of the McMartin preschool trial, the longest, most expensive trial in America at the time. It's not for the faint-hearted, but if you can I would suggest watching it. The short version is that a large group of pre-schoolers accuse the owners and teachers of a day care of horrific abuse in the late eighties. The question of memory is a key element in this story.
Witch Hunt (the one narrated by Sean Penn) is a documentary that covers a similar story in California as Indictment.
Remembering Satan is a book by Lawrence Wright about Satanic Ritual Abuse and the so-called 'Satanic Panic' in the late eighties and early nineties. It also covers the case of Paul Graham, a highly respected individual who ended up confessing to many things he did not do. If you are curious as to why false confessions happen, this is a good book to start with.
The Most Hated Man In America, also by the author of Memory Warp, covers the story of Jerry Sandusky. I picked it up after Malcom Gladwell quoted extensively from this book in Talking to Strangers, and was blown away.
Moonwalking with Einstein. A very different book than the others, but a great introduction into what memory really is and how it can work.
Memory Warp is a well argued book, but with a difficult topic like this there are never any definitive answers. If you are curious about the phenomenon of repressed memory and have already covered at least a couple of the resources above, I would recommend reading Memory Warp as well. It may end up being one of the more important books you ever read.
I have been interested in hypnosis, true crime, memory, and justice for a long time . . . this work lies at the intersection of all of them and discusses the suppressed memory phenomenon. The main question the author looks at is whether the evidence points towards the likelihood that traumatic memories can be repressed only to be remembered years later (typically through therapy) or whether its more likely they are the result of other factors and are more aptly termed false memories.
I realize that not many many people are interested in this topic, but if you are, I would say that this is definitive book on the false memory side of the argument and its very persuasive. It's not the book I would start with, but its a book I would read as part of your research. Rather than go through it point by point, I will recommend some other resources if you are wanting an introduction to the topic before turning to this book.
Indictment is a fictionalized version of the McMartin preschool trial, the longest, most expensive trial in America at the time. It's not for the faint-hearted, but if you can I would suggest watching it. The short version is that a large group of pre-schoolers accuse the owners and teachers of a day care of horrific abuse in the late eighties. The question of memory is a key element in this story.
Witch Hunt (the one narrated by Sean Penn) is a documentary that covers a similar story in California as Indictment.
Remembering Satan is a book by Lawrence Wright about Satanic Ritual Abuse and the so-called 'Satanic Panic' in the late eighties and early nineties. It also covers the case of Paul Graham, a highly respected individual who ended up confessing to many things he did not do. If you are curious as to why false confessions happen, this is a good book to start with.
The Most Hated Man In America, also by the author of Memory Warp, covers the story of Jerry Sandusky. I picked it up after Malcom Gladwell quoted extensively from this book in Talking to Strangers, and was blown away.
Moonwalking with Einstein. A very different book than the others, but a great introduction into what memory really is and how it can work.
Memory Warp is a well argued book, but with a difficult topic like this there are never any definitive answers. If you are curious about the phenomenon of repressed memory and have already covered at least a couple of the resources above, I would recommend reading Memory Warp as well. It may end up being one of the more important books you ever read.
January 24, 2018
“Memory Warp” by Mark Pendergrast: (Upper Access Books :) ISBN: 05461-802-482-2988.
“Repressed memory syndrome” – the subject of “Memory Warp” – might be described as a can of festering worms. But one that had to be opened and its contents put on show. Mr. Pendergrast has achieved this with aplomb.
The theory of “repressed memory syndrome:” the belief that memories of trauma suffered in childhood, generally sexual abuse inflicted by a close family member or person in authority, can be repressed, buried and then in adulthood, under therapy, recalled, stems from Freud. It is unproven; it is unsound and it is generally regarded by latter day researches as bunk. But in the 1980’s and 1990’s the notion gained popularity and spread like a plague infecting the U.S.A, Canada, the U.K and large swathes of mainland Europe. Disturbingly it still has adherents today.
Countless thousands have suffered its effects. Whole families and even communities have been torn apart: fathers, mothers, aunts, uncles, carers, schoolmasters and clergy, all accused, charged and condemned as pariahs. Many have been handed lengthy prison sentences. Some – perhaps most notably Gerry Sandusky, celebrated charity worker and football coach – are likely to remain in prison for life.
In “Memory Warp” Mr. Pendergrast considers the evidence in fine detail and finds the evidence wanting. He does not deny the existence of childhood sexual abuse. Indeed he concedes it widespread. Nor does he deny that such abuse is an abhorrent crime. What he does do is argue that to charge and convict anyone of such a crime solely, or largely, on the evidence of “recovered repressed memory testimony” must be considered unsafe.
I find his arguments convincing and if there are flaws I confess them beyond my grasp. I also find “Memory Warp” extremely well written and meticulously researched. The author travelled widely to conduct case studies and witness interviews, not only in his native America but also in the U.K where he spent considerable time. To say that “Memory Warp” makes absorbing reading is an understatement; it is literally addictive. Above all this it is surely an important testimony that deserves to be widely read. It is undoubtedly worth five stars.
D. A. Barker (author of “Killing for Christmas,” “What Am I?” &, in composition; “SUZANNE.”)
“Repressed memory syndrome” – the subject of “Memory Warp” – might be described as a can of festering worms. But one that had to be opened and its contents put on show. Mr. Pendergrast has achieved this with aplomb.
The theory of “repressed memory syndrome:” the belief that memories of trauma suffered in childhood, generally sexual abuse inflicted by a close family member or person in authority, can be repressed, buried and then in adulthood, under therapy, recalled, stems from Freud. It is unproven; it is unsound and it is generally regarded by latter day researches as bunk. But in the 1980’s and 1990’s the notion gained popularity and spread like a plague infecting the U.S.A, Canada, the U.K and large swathes of mainland Europe. Disturbingly it still has adherents today.
Countless thousands have suffered its effects. Whole families and even communities have been torn apart: fathers, mothers, aunts, uncles, carers, schoolmasters and clergy, all accused, charged and condemned as pariahs. Many have been handed lengthy prison sentences. Some – perhaps most notably Gerry Sandusky, celebrated charity worker and football coach – are likely to remain in prison for life.
In “Memory Warp” Mr. Pendergrast considers the evidence in fine detail and finds the evidence wanting. He does not deny the existence of childhood sexual abuse. Indeed he concedes it widespread. Nor does he deny that such abuse is an abhorrent crime. What he does do is argue that to charge and convict anyone of such a crime solely, or largely, on the evidence of “recovered repressed memory testimony” must be considered unsafe.
I find his arguments convincing and if there are flaws I confess them beyond my grasp. I also find “Memory Warp” extremely well written and meticulously researched. The author travelled widely to conduct case studies and witness interviews, not only in his native America but also in the U.K where he spent considerable time. To say that “Memory Warp” makes absorbing reading is an understatement; it is literally addictive. Above all this it is surely an important testimony that deserves to be widely read. It is undoubtedly worth five stars.
D. A. Barker (author of “Killing for Christmas,” “What Am I?” &, in composition; “SUZANNE.”)
July 17, 2018
Memory Warp
How the Myth of Repressed Memory Arose and Refuses to Die
By Mark Pendergrast
2018
Reviewed by Angie Mangino
Rating: 4 stars
In the introduction the author shares the premise, tone, and reason for this book.
“It has been over two decades since I wrote Victims of Memory, an exploration of the debate of the accuracy of so-called repressed or recovered memories of sexual abuse. … Now it is time to revisit it and update this extraordinary phenomenon.”
“I have updated my research on the subject. … The book … is partly a social and cultural history of our recent past, documenting how this incredible juggernaut of pseudoscience and malpractice, which caused so much harm, came to be…. continues to fester … will inevitably cause another major outbreak and damage the lives of additional millions of people if we do not learn from the past.”
The research is intensive. Just the essential sources after the ending chapter numbers a little over three hundred. These include books both critical of and espousing repressed memories and multiple personalities; about false convictions and sex panic; about day care sex abuse panics and leading interviews of children; about memory, the brain, and suggestibility; related to Sigmund Freud; about incest and other abuse; about religion, cults, history and culture; and about psychology and mental illness. The author additionally list Documentaries cited.
From the introduction of The Return of the Repressed to the ending ninth chapter of Conclusions and Recommendations readers have the opportunity to explore the author’s take on the repressed memories controversy.
Not a quick read, obviously, since the subject matter is complex, it gives readers the chance to evaluate the subject matter intelligently for themselves.
Angie Mangino currently works as a freelance journalist and book reviewer, additionally offering authors personalized critique service and copyediting of unpublished manuscripts. http://www.angiemangino.com
How the Myth of Repressed Memory Arose and Refuses to Die
By Mark Pendergrast
2018
Reviewed by Angie Mangino
Rating: 4 stars
In the introduction the author shares the premise, tone, and reason for this book.
“It has been over two decades since I wrote Victims of Memory, an exploration of the debate of the accuracy of so-called repressed or recovered memories of sexual abuse. … Now it is time to revisit it and update this extraordinary phenomenon.”
“I have updated my research on the subject. … The book … is partly a social and cultural history of our recent past, documenting how this incredible juggernaut of pseudoscience and malpractice, which caused so much harm, came to be…. continues to fester … will inevitably cause another major outbreak and damage the lives of additional millions of people if we do not learn from the past.”
The research is intensive. Just the essential sources after the ending chapter numbers a little over three hundred. These include books both critical of and espousing repressed memories and multiple personalities; about false convictions and sex panic; about day care sex abuse panics and leading interviews of children; about memory, the brain, and suggestibility; related to Sigmund Freud; about incest and other abuse; about religion, cults, history and culture; and about psychology and mental illness. The author additionally list Documentaries cited.
From the introduction of The Return of the Repressed to the ending ninth chapter of Conclusions and Recommendations readers have the opportunity to explore the author’s take on the repressed memories controversy.
Not a quick read, obviously, since the subject matter is complex, it gives readers the chance to evaluate the subject matter intelligently for themselves.
Angie Mangino currently works as a freelance journalist and book reviewer, additionally offering authors personalized critique service and copyediting of unpublished manuscripts. http://www.angiemangino.com
February 3, 2018
Memory Warp is a non-fiction book about the “Repressed memory therapy” and how it has affected millions of families since the 1990’s. The book proves that this form of therapy destroys family dynamics and causes false claims against innocent people such as parents and care providers. He writes in order to cause awareness about this fundamental element and provides evidential proof that science has now developed enough to make the differentiation possible.
It is known that if you seek mental health treatment in the US health care system, you may actually be harming yourself and your family because some operate on invalidated science theories and practices. This well-researched book indicates that false repressed memories of abuse that have occurred, are in fact fabricated and are damaging people’s lives.
As an example, a loving family with normal kids could end up being prosecuted by one of their children simply because their repressed memory tells them that they were sexually abused or tortured by their parents. Things of which never actually happened.
I had never heard of this before and therefore, found the topic to be increasingly interesting to read. The literature was strong, and it was fairly obvious to identify that the author knew his field. The author manages to prove that techniques used in order to recover memories can, in fact, devastatingly affect the client. The literary work was compelling, powerful and thought-provoking.
I recommend this book to people who are into psychology, repressed memories, science readers and anyone in the field of medicine.
It is known that if you seek mental health treatment in the US health care system, you may actually be harming yourself and your family because some operate on invalidated science theories and practices. This well-researched book indicates that false repressed memories of abuse that have occurred, are in fact fabricated and are damaging people’s lives.
As an example, a loving family with normal kids could end up being prosecuted by one of their children simply because their repressed memory tells them that they were sexually abused or tortured by their parents. Things of which never actually happened.
I had never heard of this before and therefore, found the topic to be increasingly interesting to read. The literature was strong, and it was fairly obvious to identify that the author knew his field. The author manages to prove that techniques used in order to recover memories can, in fact, devastatingly affect the client. The literary work was compelling, powerful and thought-provoking.
I recommend this book to people who are into psychology, repressed memories, science readers and anyone in the field of medicine.
January 12, 2018
Memory Warp: How the Myth of Repressed Memory Arose and Refuses to Die by Mark Pendergrast
This book contains adult situations, abuse and other disturbing topics.
What I really like about this book is the research and much references that are quoted about repressed memory.
Had read another book by this author and he goes above and beyond to back up his statements.
He also gives the very medical technical side of things but in easy to understand language. The other book I had read about Jerry Sandusky is also quoted in this book as it refers to the repressed memory.
Like learning about sleep paralysis, I've had these and now I know why.
Body and mind memories, good to learn about these and about PTSD and flashbacks.
Cult and Satanic insistences that are similar to the memory problems mentioned prior. Like link with hypnotic driving.
I got as far as the day care molestations and can't go any further. It's all so disturbing to me.
Gave this book a 5 because of all the intense research involved and the research on the memory warp diseases.
Received this review copy from the author and this is my honest opinion.
This book contains adult situations, abuse and other disturbing topics.
What I really like about this book is the research and much references that are quoted about repressed memory.
Had read another book by this author and he goes above and beyond to back up his statements.
He also gives the very medical technical side of things but in easy to understand language. The other book I had read about Jerry Sandusky is also quoted in this book as it refers to the repressed memory.
Like learning about sleep paralysis, I've had these and now I know why.
Body and mind memories, good to learn about these and about PTSD and flashbacks.
Cult and Satanic insistences that are similar to the memory problems mentioned prior. Like link with hypnotic driving.
I got as far as the day care molestations and can't go any further. It's all so disturbing to me.
Gave this book a 5 because of all the intense research involved and the research on the memory warp diseases.
Received this review copy from the author and this is my honest opinion.
November 16, 2021
Anyone who has been affected by the theories and methods presented in the book The Courage to Heal by Ellen Bass and Laura Davis (1988, revised 2015) regarding the use of “repressed memories” to determine the truth of cases of claimed child sexual abuse, especially by parents, must, read Mark Pendergrast’s Memory Warp: How the Myth of Repressed Memory Arose and Refuses to Die before coming to judgment per TCTH standards. The unconscionable and unjust suffering the ideology in that book has caused to “victims,” “perpetrators,” their families, and our society should not be allowed to continue. Pendergrast’s book is not perfectly balanced (false equivalency?) but it is considerably more factual than The Courage to Heal, which against all reason remains atop self-help best seller lists to this day.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews