'real' events as recorded by their parent, and also a 'false' event, created by the researchers as a misleading guide, in two separate interviews. It was found that while none of the participants incorporated the false information into their memories in the initial interview, in the follow-up interview 20% of the participants had created a false memory using the misleading information. A second related experiment revealed, that regardless what age the experimenters claimed the false event happened at (ages 2, 6 or 10) participants created false memories at the same rate. This experiment shown that as long as some relevant background material is present, under peer pressure people are likely to create false childhood memories. These results have significant implication in therapy situations, in which one is attempting to recover childhood memories, which may instead lead to creation of false memories. False memory and personality Hyman then conducted a similar study three years later, in 1998, to distinguish if there were certain personality types that were more likely to create false childhood memories. In this "Individual Differences and the Creation of False Childhood Memories" study, Hyman and his partner Billings once again sent questionnaires to the parents of psychology students asking them to describe significant life events. The student was then presented with several true memories and one researcher-created false memory. In addition, students were given four Cognitive/Personality Scale tests. These scales were used to test the students' suggestibility (Dissociative Experiences Scale), ability to create mental images from memory (Creative Imagination Scale), commitment to memory (Tellegan Absorption Scale) and desire for social acceptance (Social Desirability Scale). It was found that the more one uses mental imagery and the more suggestible they are, the more likely they are to form a false memory. Commitment to memory and social acceptance do not affect false memories. This study also found that the more students talked about the false event during the interviews, the more likely they were to create a false memories. This study is also important because it indicates that the findings of the first study are generalizable to a wider population as well as showing that people with certain personality types are more susceptible to the creation of false memories in psychotherapy, where similar techniques are regularly used. Traumatic memories Hyman is also interested in the effect of trauma on memory, specifically the negative experiences of childhood on memory. Memories of