screen memory

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screen memory

A child recalls a happy screen memory of a birthday party.

Definition

Noun: * A Substituted Memory: A type of imagined or altered memory, often from childhood, that the mind unconsciously creates and recalls in place of a different, more distressing or unacceptable memory. The screen memory is typically less emotionally charged and serves to conceal or "screen" the true, more significant memory from conscious awareness.

Usage
  • In Psychoanalysis: The term is primarily used in the context of psychoanalytic theory, particularly Sigmund Freud's work, to describe a specific memory phenomenon during therapy or self-analysis.
  • As a Protective Mechanism: It describes a psychological defense mechanism where a benign memory substitutes for a traumatic one.
Examples
Advanced Usage
  • Characteristics: A screen memory is often notable for its vivid, sharp detail concerning minor elements, while the central event or its emotional context may feel vague or incongruent. It is not a deliberate lie but an unconscious fabrication.
  • Therapeutic Focus: In psychoanalytic practice, uncovering the latent content behind a screen memory is a key therapeutic goal, as it is believed to lead to repressed material central to the individual's neurosis.
Variants and Related Words
  • Screen (verb): In a psychological context, to conceal or protect from awareness.
    • The ego screens threatening impulses.
  • Repressed Memory (noun): The distressing, hidden memory that the screen memory protects.
  • False Memory (noun): A broader, more general term for any memory of an event that did not occur, which may or may not have a defensive psychological function like a screen memory.
Synonyms
  • Cover memory
  • Memory substitute
  • Protective memory
Antonyms
  • Accurate memory
  • True recollection
  • Verified memory
Related Concepts
  • Defense Mechanism: The general psychological process to which screen memory belongs.
  • Repression: The primary defense mechanism often involved, where distressing memories are pushed into the unconscious.
  • Psychoanalysis: The theoretical framework where this concept is most rigorously defined and applied.
screen memory

A child recalls a happy screen memory of a birthday party.

Noun
  1. an imagined memory of a childhood experience; hides another memory of distressing significance