Even people with the best memory can sometimes be forgetful, claims the new research published on APA PsycNet.
While sometimes our forgetfulness doesn't make any real harm, sometimes it can lead to a disaster.
Let's find out more about the research and how our memory works.
Why the research was made
Approximately 496 children in the US have died of pediatric vehicular heatstroke since 1998 due to caregiver forgetfulness, according to NoHeatStroke.org.
Researchers at the University of Notre Dame conducted a study to understand this forgetfulness by examining college students' propensity to forget their cellphones.
They found that environmental cues failing to trigger memory at the right moment led to forgetting.
Theory time
The researchers theorized that similar memory lapses occur when parents drive with a baby in the backseat, as the absence of cues can contribute to forgetting.
Gender was found to have no influence on memory errors.
The study has implications for understanding and addressing cases where parents unintentionally leave children in car seats, shedding light on the factors behind such tragic incidents.
