The last decade has seen a major growth in research on how memory is used in everyday life. This volume represents a reaction to traditional laboratory-bound studies of the first half of the century which sought to identify the fundamental principles of learning and memory through the use of materials and methods totally divorced from the real world. The new wave of memory research has had considerable success in charting how memory develops, the role it plays in educational and social skills and the impact of memory impairment on mental life. The current volume consists of authoritative reviews of this emerging area linked to comment and criticism from major researchers in the field.

Contrasted, probably for the first time, are two major styles of research in applied memory research: The "naturalistic approach," which has sought to study memory in everyday environments, using actual experiences from people's lives as the raw data from which to derive more general principles, and the "applied cognitive approach," whereby theories and methods are developed using orthodox laboratory techniques which are then validated by applying them directly to real phenomena. This is one of the few books to bring together evidence across the very wide spectrum of humdrum activity that constitutes the everyday uses of memory.

When a person recovers a memory of an event from their past for which they claim little or no previous awareness, how reliable is that memory?

In this refreshing new approach to the problem, Graham Davies and Tim Dalgleish have assembled leading figures from both sides of the debate to provide a balanced overview of the evidence from theoretical and clinical psychologists.

Recovered Memories: Seeking the Middle Ground, unlike most other writing on the topic, eschews extreme positions. It provides clinicians with findings from the latest research to enhance their understanding of memory and presents pure researchers with a range of experiences encountered in clinical practice for which they presently have few explanations.

Organised around three themes, social, evidential and clinical aspects are covered. Topics include the impact on family and community members, the latest findings on implanted memories and discussion of clinical guidelines for therapeutic practice.

This important new collection should not be missed by anyone with an interest in memory, whether engaged in a clinical, legal, child protection, family welfare or experimental research capacity. It is the most authoritative and comprehensive review of the evidence on both sides available to date.