A possible shared underlying mechanism among involuntary autobiographical memory and déjà vu.

We propose that IAM and déjà vu may not share a placement on the same gradient, per se, but the mechanism of , and a major differentiating factor between the two metacognitive experiences is whether the resulting inward directed search of memory yields retrieved content or not. Déjà vu may manifest when contentless familiarity detection is inexplicable by the experiencer.