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Memory is never a literal recount of past experiences. Rather, it is dependent on the constructive processes present at the time of [[Encoding (memory)|encoding]] that are subject to potential errors and distortions. Essentially, the constructive memory process functions by encoding the patterns of physical characteristics that are perceived by the individual, as well as the interpretive conceptual and semantic functions that act in response to the incoming information.<ref>Schacter DL. 1989. Memory. In Foundations
of Cognitive Science, ed. MI Posner, pp.
683–725. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press</ref> By utilizing multiple interdependent cognitive processes there is never a single ___location in the brain where a given complete [[memory trace]] of an experience is stored.<ref>Squire LR. 1992. [http://whoville.ucsd.edu/PDFs/188_Squire_PsychRev_1992.pdf Memory and the hippocampus: a synthesis from findings with rats, monkeys, and humans]. Psychol. Rev. 99:
195–231</ref> In this manner, the various features of the experience must be joined together to form a coherent representation of the episode and if this binding process fails it can result in source memory failure, where later attempted retrieval of the episode results in fragmented recollection and an inability to consolidate the information into a cohesive narrative of a past experience.
During the recall of Episodic memory, the information that a person remembers is usually limited in scope, ultimately giving an incomplete recollection of an event. By employing reconstructive processes, individuals supplement other aspects of available personal knowledge into the gaps found in episodic memory in order to provide a fuller and more coherent version, albeit one that is often distorted.
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