In an analysis of memory systems, Sherry and Schacter (Psychological Review, 94, 439–454, 1987) emphasized the importance of functional and evolutionary considerations for characterizing mechanisms of memory. The present article considers four different yet closely related topics from more recent research in which similar considerations have played a prominent role in shaping both experiment and theory: the seven sins of memory, mechanisms underlying memory misattribution errors, the role of memory in imagining future experiences, and the relation between associative inference and memory errors. These lines of research illustrate the usefulness of attempting to integrate functional and mechanistic considerations, in line with the general approach articulated by Sherry and Schacter.

在对记忆系统的分析中，Sherry 和 Schacter ( Psychological Review, 94 , 439–454, 1987) 强调了功能和进化考虑因素对于表征记忆机制的重要性。本文考虑了四个不同但密切相关的主题，这些主题来自最近的研究，在这些主题中，类似的考虑在塑造实验和理论方面发挥了突出作用：记忆的七大罪、记忆错误归因错误的潜在机制、记忆在想象未来经历中的作用，以及联想推理和记忆错误之间的关系。这些研究方向说明了根据 Sherry 和 Schacter 阐述的一般方法，尝试整合功能和机械考虑因素的有用性。