When Explanations Fail: Science and Pseudoscience in Psychology

Newman and Baumeister review several accounts of unidentified flying object (UFO) abduction phenomena (including the hypothesis of actual abduction). They then construct their own argument and propose that it is more plausible than existing accounts. According to their account, UFO abduction stories are a consequence of false memories among fantasy-prone individuals motivated to escape from self-awareness. To begin, note that the arguments constructed by Newman and Baumeister are no less post hoc than the arguments they attack: All were constructed to account for a particular phenomenon. Second, note that there are several post hoc elements to Newman and Baumeister's argument that can themselves be considered independent accounts of the phenomenon. According to one account, UFO abduction stories are false memories-accounts of events that did not take place but that have been incorporated in memory as actual events. The ultimate origin of such false memories is presumed to be existing accounts of UFO abductions. Given their external origin, I refer to this account as one of planted memories. According to a second account, UFO abduction stories are the result of overactive fantasies related to frontallobe abnormalities. Finally, according to a third account, UFO abduction stories are the result of a motivation to avoid painful self-awareness. Newman and Baumeistermake clear that these three accounts are not mutually exclusive, but they are not identical either. It might well be that a complete account requires all three elements, and this is the position Newman and Baumeister take: False memories of UFO abductions occur among individuals high in fantasy proneness who are also motivated to escape from self-awareness. Leaving aside arguments concerning actual abduction, a variety of accounts exist that include some elements of Newman and Baumeister's account. Indeed, by mixing and matching the three elements just outlined, seven accounts are possible. UFO abduction stories are a consequence of: 1. Planted memories. 2. Fantasy states. 3. Escape from self-awareness. 4. Planted memories and fantasy. 5. Planted memories and escape from selfawareness. 6. Fantasy and escape from self-awareness. 7. Planted memories, fantasy, and escape from self-awareness.!