Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
Of the two effects of interference theory, proactive interference is the less common and less problematic type of interference compared to retroactive interference. [1] Previously, it had been hypothesized that forgetting working memories would be nonexistent if not for proactive interference.
Catastrophic interference, also known as catastrophic forgetting, is the tendency of an artificial neural network to abruptly and drastically forget previously learned information upon learning new information. [1] [2] Neural networks are an important part of the connectionist approach to cognitive science.
Another explanation for why we forget learned information is the decay of information. This concept determines the impermanence of memory storage as an explanation for forgetting. [1] Decay theory posits that the process of forgetting is due to the inevitable fading of memory traces over time. [4]
Motivated forgetting is a theorized psychological behavior in which people may forget unwanted memories, either consciously or unconsciously. [1] It is an example of a defence mechanism, since these are unconscious or conscious coping techniques used to reduce anxiety arising from unacceptable or potentially harmful impulses thus it can be a defence mechanism in some ways. [2]
Although interference can lead to forgetting, it is important to keep in mind that there are situations when old information can facilitate learning of new information. Knowing Latin, for instance, can help an individual learn a related language such as French – this phenomenon is known as positive transfer.
Interference occurs when specific information inhibits learning and /or recall for a specific memory. [38] There are two forms of interference. First, proactive interference has to do with difficulty in learning new material based on the inability to override information from older memories. [39]
Interference theory refers to the idea that when the learning of something new causes forgetting of older material on the basis of competition between the two. This essentially states that memory's information may become confused or combined with other information during encoding, resulting in the distortion or disruption of memories. [ 16 ]
These psychologists applied the concept of inhibition (and interference) to early theories of learning and forgetting. [5] Starting in 1894, German scientists Muller and Shumann conducted empirical studies that demonstrated how learning a second list of items interfered with memory of the first list. [ 5 ]