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    An interference account of cue-independent forgetting in the no-think paradigm

    Tomlinson, T.D. and Huber, D.E. and Rieth, C.A. and Davelaar, Eddy J. (2009) An interference account of cue-independent forgetting in the no-think paradigm. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 106 (37), pp. 15588-15593. ISSN 0027-8424.

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    Abstract

    Memory suppression is investigated with the no-think paradigm, which produces forgetting following repeated practice of not thinking about a memory [Anderson MC, Green C (2001) Nature 410:366–369]. Because the forgotten item is not retrieved even when tested with an independent, semantically related cue, it has been assumed that this forgetting is due to an inhibition process. However, this conclusion is based on a single stage to recall, whereas global memory models, which produce forgetting through a process of interference, include both a sampling and a recovery stage to recall. By assuming that interference exists during recovery, these models can explain cue-independent forgetting. We tested several predictions of this interference explanation of cue-independent forgetting by modifying the think/no-think paradigm. We added a condition where participants quickly pressed enter rather than not thinking. We also manipulated initial memory strength and tested recognition memory. Most importantly, learning to quickly press enter produced as much cue-independent forgetting as no-think instructions. Demonstrating the adequacy of two-stage recall, a simple computational model (SAM-RI) simultaneously captured the original cue, independent cue, and recognition results.

    Metadata

    Item Type: Article
    Keyword(s) / Subject(s): cued recall, inhibition, recall, recognition, computational model
    School: Birkbeck Faculties and Schools > Faculty of Science > School of Psychological Sciences
    Depositing User: Administrator
    Date Deposited: 06 Jan 2011 09:22
    Last Modified: 02 Aug 2023 16:52
    URI: https://eprints.bbk.ac.uk/id/eprint/2357

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