Archive

Learning styles: Why they don't exist but still persist

It is a common myth that for optimal learning, individual learning styles should be identified and specifically supported. This might include identifying someone as a visual learner and designing the learning environment based on this. Yet, scientific findings clearly show that aligning learning environments with learning styles has no beneficial effects. Why does this myth persist and what can we do about it?

There is a German version of this article available

Can We Believe in Our Own Lies?

Can we believe in our own lies? Such a question eventually boils down to the issue of whether lying affects memory. ­­­­­­­This is particularly relevant in the legal arena, where witnesses, offenders, and suspects adopt deceptive strategies in several situations. 

Introduction

In 1995, Binjamin Wilkormiski published a book entitled Fragments: Memories of a Wartime Childhood 1939-1948. In his book,...

Seeing and Believing: Common Courtroom Myths in Eyewitness Memory

When it comes to understanding eyewitness memory, people’s commonsense views are sometimes consistent with contemporary scientific knowledge – but sometimes they are dangerously adrift. This article aims to unravel some of the common myths that appear in the courts, in the news, and in the awareness of the public. On a mid-summer evening in 1982, in a small town in the southern U.S., 24-year-old Susan¹ was walking home, when a man grabbed her, threatened her with a gun, forced her... / more