In
psychology
Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Its subject matter includes the behavior of humans and nonhumans, both consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, and mental processes such as thoughts, feel ...
, ''jamais vu'' ( , , ), a
French loanword
A loanword (also a loan word, loan-word) is a word at least partly assimilated from one language (the donor language) into another language (the recipient or target language), through the process of borrowing. Borrowing is a metaphorical term t ...
meaning "never seen", is the
phenomenon
A phenomenon ( phenomena), sometimes spelled phaenomenon, is an observable Event (philosophy), event. The term came into its modern Philosophy, philosophical usage through Immanuel Kant, who contrasted it with the noumenon, which ''cannot'' be ...
of experiencing a situation that one recognizes in some fashion, but that nonetheless seems novel and unfamiliar.
Overview
''Jamais vu'' involves a sense of eeriness and the observer’s impression of experiencing something for the first time, despite rationally knowing that they have experienced it before.
''Jamais vu'' is commonly explained as when a person momentarily does not recognize a word or, less commonly, a person or place, that they already know.
''Jamais vu'' is sometimes associated with certain types of
aphasia
Aphasia, also known as dysphasia, is an impairment in a person's ability to comprehend or formulate language because of dysfunction in specific brain regions. The major causes are stroke and head trauma; prevalence is hard to determine, but aph ...
,
amnesia
Amnesia is a deficit in memory caused by brain damage or brain diseases,Gazzaniga, M., Ivry, R., & Mangun, G. (2009) Cognitive Neuroscience: The biology of the mind. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. but it can also be temporarily caused by t ...
, and
epilepsy
Epilepsy is a group of Non-communicable disease, non-communicable Neurological disorder, neurological disorders characterized by a tendency for recurrent, unprovoked Seizure, seizures. A seizure is a sudden burst of abnormal electrical activit ...
.
The phenomenon is often grouped with ''
déjà vu
''Déjà vu'' ( , ; "already seen") is the phenomenon of feeling like one has
lived through the present situation in the past.Schnider, Armin. (2008). ''The Confabulating Mind: How the Brain Creates Reality''. Oxford University Press. pp. 167–1 ...
'' and ''
presque vu'' (''
tip of the tongue'', literally "almost seen"). It is generally a rare phenomenon.
Experiment
A study by
Chris Moulin of Leeds University asked 92 volunteers to write out "door" 30 times in 60 seconds. In July 2006, at the 4th International Conference on Memory in Sydney, he reported that 68 percent of volunteers showed symptoms of ''jamais vu'', such as beginning to doubt that "door" was a real word. Moulin believes that a similar brain fatigue underlies some symptoms of schizophrenia and
Capgras delusion. Moulin suggests that people with these conditions could be suffering from chronic ''jamais vu''.
Causes
''Jamais vu'' can be caused by
epileptic seizure
A seizure is a sudden, brief disruption of brain activity caused by abnormal, excessive, or synchronous neuronal firing. Depending on the regions of the brain involved, seizures can lead to changes in movement, sensation, behavior, awareness, o ...
s.
"Epilepsy and seizure information for patients and health professionals – Simple Partial Seizures", retrieved 2011-09-08
/ref>
Related phenomena
*''Déjà vu
''Déjà vu'' ( , ; "already seen") is the phenomenon of feeling like one has
lived through the present situation in the past.Schnider, Armin. (2008). ''The Confabulating Mind: How the Brain Creates Reality''. Oxford University Press. pp. 167–1 ...
'': having the strong sensation that an event or experience being experienced, has already been experienced in the past, whether it has actually happened or not. In French, this means 'already seen'.
* Tip of the tongue: almost, but not quite, remembering something.
See also
* Capgras delusion (the delusion that a friend or relative is an impostor)
* Cryptomnesia
* Depersonalization derealization disorder
*Derealization
Derealization is an alteration in the perception of the external world, causing those with the condition to perceive it as unreal, distant, distorted, or in other ways falsified. Other symptoms include feeling as if one's environment lacks spontan ...
* Mandela effect
* Semantic satiation
* Uncanny
References
Further reading
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Perception
Semiotics
es:Déjà vu#Jamais vu
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