Retrieval-induced forgetting without competition: Testing the retrieval specificity assumption of the inhibition theory (original) (raw)
Related papers
Retrieval-induced forgetting: Testing the competition assumption of inhibition theory
Canadian Journal of Experimental Psychology/Revue canadienne de psychologie expérimentale, 2012
Practicing the retrieval of some information can lead to poorer retrieval of other related information, a phenomenon called retrieval-induced forgetting (RIF). This pattern has been explained as the result of inhibition of the related information during practice (Anderson, 2003). A core assumption of this inhibition account is that, to be suppressed, the related information must compete with the target information at the time of retrieval practice. Three experiments are reported that test this competition assumption. One experiment showed that RIF did not occur without specific retrieval practice of the target items when semantic generation of subordinates was performed. However, in 2 further experiments, RIF did occur when the semantic generation task was paired with category retrieval. Although there was no need for competition between target information and related information in these experiments, RIF was observed. These experiments undermine the competition assumption and hence the inhibition account.
Is Forgetting Caused by Inhibition?
Current Directions in Psychological Science, 2013
A well-known finding in memory research is the forgetting effect that occurs due to practicing some item A on the recall of a related item B. The traditional explanation for such interference effects is based on the notion of competition. According to the inhibition theory of forgetting, however, such forgetting is due to an inhibitory control process that operates whenever the retrieval of specific target information is hindered by competition from related information. The suppression of the related information is a longer-lasting phenomenon that may show up on later testing. We report several experiments that were carried out to test two fundamental assumptions of the inhibition theory, the interference dependence and retrieval specificity assumptions. The results of these experiments do not support the predictions of the inhibition theory. Instead, the results are more compatible with the standard account that attributes the forgetting to competition at the time of the later testing.
A progress report on the inhibitory account of retrieval-induced forgetting
Memory & Cognition, 2012
Remembering and forgetting reflect fundamentally interdependent processes in human memory (Bjork, 2011). This interdependency is particularly apparent in research on retrieval-induced forgetting, which has shown that retrieving a subset of information can cause the forgetting of other information (Anderson et al.
Retrieval-Induced Forgetting: A Test
Two experiments addressed the phenomenon of retrieval-induced forgetting (RIF) from the standpoint of cognitive energetics theory (CET). Consistent with the inhibitory account of RIF and with the notion that inhibition can be demanding and resource dependent, we found that where the inhibitory activity was difficult (vs. easy), defining a high restraining force according to the CET, RIF occurred only in the presence of a high driving force combining an elevated motivation to inhibit with the availability of high resources. Overall, the current work highlights the crucial role of motivation in producing the RIF and the way in which this phenomenon abides by the general principles of motivated cognition.
Remembering Can Cause Inhibition: Retrieval-Induced Inhibition as Cue Independent Process
Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 2004
Previous experiments have mostly relied on recall as a dependent measure to assess whether retrieval of information from memory causes inhibition of related information. This study aimed to measure this inhibition in a more direct way. In Experiment 1, it was shown that repeated retrieval of exemplars from a category resulted in longer recognition latencies to nonretrieved exemplars from that same category, compared with recognition latencies to control exemplars. Experiment 2 obtained the same pattern of results using a lexical decision task. This was the 1st time that retrieval-induced forgetting was demonstrated on an implicit test of memory. To exclude noninhibitory explanations of the data, the exemplars were presented in both experiments without their categories as cues.
Putting retrieval-induced forgetting in context: An inhibition-free, context-based account
Psychological Review, 2013
We present a new theoretical account of retrieval-induced forgetting (RIF) together with new experimental evidence that fits this account and challenges the dominant inhibition account. RIF occurs when the retrieval of some material from memory produces later forgetting of related material. The inhibition account asserts that RIF is the result of an inhibition mechanism that acts during retrieval to suppress the representations of interfering competitors. This inhibition is enduring, such that the suppressed material is difficult to access on a later test and is, therefore, recalled more poorly than baseline material. Although the inhibition account is widely accepted, a growing body of research challenges its fundamental assumptions. Our alternative account of RIF instead emphasizes the role of context in remembering. According to this context account, both of 2 tenets must be met for RIF to occur: (a) A context change must occur between study and subsequent retrieval practice, and (b) the retrieval practice context must be the active context during the final test when testing practiced categories. The results of 3 experiments, which directly test the divergent predictions of the 2 accounts, support the context account but cannot be explained by the inhibition account. In an extensive discussion, we survey the literature on RIF and apply our context account to the key findings, demonstrating the explanatory power of context.
Cognitive Neuroscience, 2016
Intentional forgetting is posited to utilize both encoding and inhibition to control what information enters long-term memory. Within the context of the directed forgetting paradigm, evidence for the role of inhibition to support forgetting has been examined primarily during encoding. Specifically, past studies have shown that when encoding processes are intentionally inhibited, information is less likely to be remembered. Despite the recruitment of such inhibitory processes, not all items are successfully forgotten. The current study examined whether items that should have been forgotten (F items), but were ultimately recollected, showed neural evidence at retrieval of having previously undergone attempted inhibition, particularly when compared to items that received "remember" instructions (R items). Results indicate that recollection of F items engaged additional activity in the prefrontal cortex, including the right inferior frontal gyrus and right superior frontal gyrus, suggesting that retrieval of these items required greater effort, most likely due to inhibitory processes that were engaged at encoding. These results suggest that inhibitory processing during attempted but unsuccessful forgetting can result in a more difficult retrieval period.