unconscious transfer

a memory distortion that results from confusing the source of the information recalled (see source confusion). In legal contexts, for example, a witness may mistakenly recognize an individual in a lineup as the perpetrator, when in fact the individual’s face is familiar because it was earlier presented in a photograph. Also called unconscious transference.

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Psychology term of the day

January 11th 2025

deficiency motivation

in Abraham Maslow’s humanistic psychology, the type of motivation operating on the lower four levels of his hierarchy of needs (see Maslow’s motivational hierarchy). Deficiency motivation is characterized by the striving to correct a deficit that may be physiological or psychological in nature. Compare metamotivation.