Been There Done That

It's hard to recreate and study the "been there done that" feeling. Is the brain going haywire or is it a case of "new" experiences.

By Carlin Flora, published on March 01, 2005 - last reviewed on June 14, 2005

Deja vu -- that eerie sensation of having already lived through a particular moment -- is one of psychology's most enduring, but rarely studied, mysteries. Yet if it were better understood, argues Alan Brown, professor of psychology at Southern Methodist University, it could be an effective window into the brain.

Although the majority of the population has experienced deja vu, the topic has been largely forsaken by scientists. "Deja vu has been embraced as parapsychology," explains Brown.

Of course, there's another major hurdle to studying the been-there feeling: It's impossible to recreate on demand in a laboratory. But Brown, author of The Deja Vu Experience, believes scientists can identify its triggers by creating an illusion of familiarity within study subjects -- one that approximates spontaneous episodes of deja vu.

Several theories are worth putting to the test, he argues. The "dual processing" theory, for example, holds that deja vu happens when two cognitive processes are momentarily out of sync. Another theory posits that deja vu occurs when a memory we've consciously forgotten (whether from real life, a book, a film or even a dream) connects with part of our present experience. Or, deja vu could be conceived of as an attentional slip: Our brain quickly takes in a scene without our noticing. Then, when we do become aware of what we perceive, it feels familiar -- not because we've seen it before, but because we've already processed it on another cognitive level.

Psychology may need a push to demystify deja vu, but its allure for the rest of us comes naturally. Says Brown, "We are always fascinated when the brain goes haywire."

Been There Done That?

Deja vu seems most common in those between the ages of 15 and 25. "One speculation is that deja vu is a kind of misfiring that occurs as the brain is maturing," says Alan Brown. Or it could be that as people age their range of experiences increases, which renders new situations less stimulating and less likely to spur an episode of deja vu. This theory may explain why frequent travelers report more episodes of deja vu than do others.

People are more likely to have experienced deja vu if they:

Have an active imagination and recall their dreams easily.
Are fatigued or under stress.
Have higher-than-average levels of education and a higher income.
Are open-minded or politically liberal (irrespective of party affiliation). "People who have liberal leanings are more willing to admit to having a 'strange' experience than those who are conservative," says Brown. This may explain why religious fundamentalists report fewer episodes of deja vu.