The Psychology of Alien Abduction Beliefs: Sleep Paralysis, Memory Distortion, and Cultural Narratives

To the point

Belief in alien abductions arises from a mix of sleep paralysis and dreamlike experiences, cultural narratives that shape interpretation, memory distortions highlighted by Elizabeth Loftus, and personal factors such as a desire to escape or past trauma, with some cases involving fabrication, all of which have informed scientific study of memory and fed into broader culture, including the Mulder–Scully dynamic.