Research from the past decades has shown that retrieval of a specific memory (e.g., retrieving part of a previous vacation) typically attenuates retrieval of other memories (e.g., memories for other details of the event), causing retrieval-induced forgetting. More recently, however, it has been shown that retrieval can both attenuate and aid recall of other memories (K.-H. T. Bäuml & A. Samenie...

Four studies explored the effects of self-focused rumination vs. distraction on dysphoric and nondysphoric students' retrieval of autobiographical memories. Dysphorics induced to ruminate subsequently recalled more negatively biased autobiographical memories in free recall (Study 1) and in response to prompts for memories (Study 2) than either dysphorics who first distracted themselves from the...

A new model for associative memories is proposed in this paper. The mathematical tools used in this new model, include two binary operators designed specifically for the memories developed here. These operators were arbitrarí/y named as the .first two letters from the Greek alphabet: a and fJ. The new associative memories (afJ)are oftwo kinds and are able to operate in two different modes. The ...

Traumatic stress associated with childhood sexual abuse (CSA) may result in chronic alterations of stress-sensitive neurochemical systems (e.g., the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and sympathetic-adrenal medullary activity). Some authors have suggested that these alterations might help explain why some individuals, after a period of inability to remember, demonstrate delayed recall of CSA ...

Individuals with social anxiety preferentially attend to threatening social information during and following social events. As such, cognitive models predict that social anxiety should be associated with biases in the recall of social events. However, initial experimental studies examining this assumption either failed to find such biases or found only weak evidence for an autobiographical memo...

BACKGROUND Increased recall of categorical autobiographical memories is a phenomenon unique to depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, and is associated with a poor prognosis for depression. Although the elevated recall of categorical memories does not change on remission from depression, recent findings suggest that overgeneral memory may be reduced by cognitive interventions and mainta...