Concept · Cognitive Bias: Memory biases and distortions
Misattribution
Origin: Schacter, 1999/2001
Biological Parallel
Pattern recognition prioritizes speed over accuracy—a gazelle that waits to verify whether rustling grass is wind or predator doesn't survive. Memory systems optimized for rapid prediction routinely conflate similar experiences, trading precision for reaction time. Source confusion is the cost of a system built to answer 'what happens next?' not 'what happened exactly?'