Directed forgetting of autobiographical events
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Two diary experiments demonstrated directed forgetting (DF) of autobiographical events, previously observed only for less complex memory items. Using a 2-week diary paradigm, we compared recall between a group of participants who were directed to forget Week 1 memories (forget group) and a group who did not receive a forget instruction (remember group). In Experiment 1, the forget group remembered fewer items from Week 1 than did the remember group. The effect was observed for negative and positive valence events, as well as for high and low emotional intensity events. The effect was replicated in Experiment 2 despite a memorable holiday (Valentine's Day) that occurred during the manipulation week. Forget participants remembered fewer low emotional intensity items in Experiment 2. We conclude that intentional forgetting is a plausible explanation for the loss of some autobiographical memories.
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Individuals can intentionally forget and suppress autobiographical memories.
“Interestingly, it has been shown that individuals can intentionally forget and suppress autobiographical memories (Barnier et al., 2007;Joslyn & Oakes, 2005;Noreen & MacLeod, 2013).”
From Understanding Autobiographical Memory in the Digital Age: The AMEDIA-Model (2024) · cites this paper as Joslyn & Oakes, 2005
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- Authors
- Joslyn, S. L., & Oakes, M. A.
- Affiliations
- University of Washington (US)
- Corresponding author
- Joslyn, Susan L.
- Venue
- Memory & Cognition
- Published
- 2005-06
- Volume
- 33
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 577-587
- ISSN
- 0090-502X (ISSN-L)
- 1532-5946
- OpenAlex
- W2025648609
- Cited by
- 77
- References
- 4
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 1 · 2024: 20 · 2023: 2 · 2021: 2 · 2020: 3 · 2019: 4 · 2018: 2 · 2017: 1 · 2016: 3 · 2015: 3 · 2014: 3 · 2013: 12 · 2012: 3
- FWCI
- 0.99
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Licence
- www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
- Locations
- Memory & Cognition (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Memory Processes and Influences
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Identity, Memory, and Therapy
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Cognitive Functions and Memory
- Keywords
- directed forgetting, autobiographical memory, intentional forgetting, memory loss, emotional valence, emotional intensity, memory retrieval
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Adult, Affect, Autobiographies as Topic, Cues, Female, Humans, Male, Mental Recall
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