De. Fleck et al., Directed forgetting in explicit and implicit memory: The role of encoding and retrieval mechanisms, PSYCHOL REC, 51(2), 2001, pp. 207-221
Despite the fact that directed-forgetting effects have been attributed to e
ither retrieval inhibition or selective encoding, there has been no compell
ing evidence to suggest that either mechanism regulates performance in both
implicit and explicit memory. Therefore, in two experiments we sought (a)
to determine whether directed forgetting influences tests of implicit (lexi
cal decision) and explicit (recognition) memory and (b) to examine the rela
tive contributions of the encoding and retrieval mechanisms thought to medi
ate directed forgetting by having participants perform an external interfer
ence task (i.e., sequential finger tapping) at either encoding or retrieval
. In Experiment 1, directed-forgetting effects were demonstrated by better
performance on remember-cued than on forget-cued words for both lexical dec
ision and recognition. In Experiment 2, external interference disrupted dir
ected forgetting in lexical decision when it occurred at retrieval and in r
ecognition at encoding. These results demonstrate that although directed fo
rgetting occurs on both implicit and explicit tests, it may be independentl
y regulated by differential retrieval on the former and selective encoding
on the latter. The discussion focuses on the differential excitation of rem
ember- and forget-cued word representations, as inhibitory processing seeme
d not to account for directed-forgetting effects in either implicit or expl
icit memory.