Numerous studies claim to have shown that false memories can be easily created in the laboratory. However, a critical analysis of the methods employed in these studies indicates that many of them do not address memory in the strict sense of the word. Instead, some of these studies assess the confidence that participants have in a fictitious (childhood) event, while others pertain to false beliefs about childhood events. While it is difficult to draw precise demarcation lines, we argue that inflated confidence, false beliefs, and false memories are different phenomena. Keeping the origins of these studies in mind (i.e., people who file lawsuits on the basis of their recovered memories), we propose that a fruitful, but stringent definition of false memories would incorporate their consequences. Thus, we argue that this research domain would profit from studies looking explicitly at whether experimental manipulations intended to implant false memories have overt behavioral consequences.

Department of Experimental Psychology, Maastricht University, P.O. Box 616, 6200 MD Maastricht, The Netherlands. tom.smeets@psychology.unimaas.nl

Nowadays, there is compelling evidence that there is a poor relationship between the incoming sensory input and the resulting pain sensation. Signals coming from the peripheral nervous system undergo a complex modulation by cognitive, affective, and motivational processes when they enter the central nervous system. Placebo- and hypnosis-induced analgesia form two extreme examples of how cognitive processes may influence the pain sensation. With the advent of modern brain imaging techniques, researchers have started to disentangle the brain mechanisms involved in these forms of cognitive modulation of pain. These studies have shown that the prefrontal and anterior cingulate cortices form important structures in a descending pathway that modulates incoming sensory input, likely via activation of the endogenous pain modulatory structures in the midbrain periaqueductal gray. Although little is known about the receptor systems involved in hypnosis-induced analgesia, studies of the placebo response suggest that the opiodergic and dopaminergic systems play an important role in the mediation of the placebo response.

Center for Functionally Integrative Neuroscience (CFIN), Aarhus University and Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark.

Although psychosocial coping techniques and supportive care services have been shown to improve cancer patients' quality of life, there is evidence that many of these strategies have not been widely integrated into the routine care of cancer patients. This study examined: (1) the extent to which cancer patients use certain coping strategies; (2) reasons for non-use; (3) perceived effectiveness of the coping strategies; (4) participants' interest in trying the strategies; and (5) if the strategies were recommended to participants. At the Northwestern Ontario Regional Cancer Centre in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, 292 outpatients (98% response rate) completed an in-person interview with a research assistant concerning seven individual coping strategies (music, breathing exercises, meditation, prayer, muscle relaxation, visualization/imagery, hypnosis/self-hypnosis) and four coping strategies offered through supportive care services (individual counselling, family counselling, support groups, religious support). Of all the coping strategies presented, prayer was used by the highest number (n = 186) of participants (64%). Music was the next most commonly used strategy, used by 43% (n = 124) of participants, and all other strategies were used by less than 30%of participants. The individualized approaches that are used for disseminating disease and treatment information to cancer patients should also be used to provide them with information on effective coping strategies.

Centre for Behavioural Research and Program, University of Waterloo, Canada.