Most Americans Remember Surprisingly Little From Their Earliest Years
A recent YouGov survey paints a striking picture of how Americans remember childhood. According to the poll, only 9% of adults say they remember “a lot” from when they were six years old. Even by the time people reach age 16, only 41% feel they remember that stage of life in detail, while 52% still describe their teenage memories as limited.
Those findings may sound surprising, but they fit with something psychologists have studied for decades. Most people experience what researchers call childhood amnesia, the natural inability to recall events from the earliest years of life.
The 2022 YouGov survey reached a similar conclusion. It found that only 16% of American adults believe they remember something from age two or younger.
