Forgetting

Forgetting is the loss of memory. Man forgets away continuously over time, the rate and extent of forgetting are dependent on many factors, including the interest of the emotionality of memory and "importance" of information ( Essentials before details). Research on the process of forgetting are an important part of the memory research. The exact function of forgetting is still largely unexplained.

Investigations to forget

Hermann Ebbinghaus had 1885 in a self- experiment in which he attempted to learn nonsense syllables like " ZOF " or " WUB " to find that he had already forgotten after about 20 minutes about 40 % of what is learned, after an hour and 45% after one days 66%. From these experiments he deduced the forgetting curve.

Marigold Linton also conducted a self-experiment. She led for six years a detailed diary in which they logged important personal events with additional information. Every month she checked her memories based on about 150 records. After one year 1% of the listed details were on average forget after two years, there were also 5.1%, after four years of 4.2% and 5.5% after 5 years more. In the end they could remember about 31.4 % of the events. As Linton has dealt intensively with her ​​memory, it can be assumed that the memory performance should be worse under normal everyday conditions.

It depends on many factors, how long something remains in the memory. So senseless and incoherent information such as Ebbinghaus ' syllables are quickly forgotten as a coherent and orderly. Information with emotional coloring and self- respect also remain very long in the memory.

After Ribot'schen law, which was formulated by Théodule Ribot 1882 and that can be described as first in, last out, early learned contents remain longer in the memory than added later.

Theories of Forgetting

The main theories of forgetting are the following:

Trace decay theory

In everyday thinking, the idea is ingrained that time can make a difference, as well as the assumption that ( unused ) memory contents, such as footprints in the sand, with time fade or disappear. But time can cause anything as such. As with the tracks in the sand, which are destroyed by wind or water, is to assume that there must be certain forces or influences that affect on memory.

Does not have any physical or chemical processes are known which affect the memory span of the register or the short-term sensory memory.

In the long-term memory, such processes can be described, however. It is assumed that the strength of synaptic connections with the strength of an engram ( memory trace ) corresponds. So, the stronger the connections between neurons, the above permanent and readily available is a memory information. Form the basis for such changes on the cellular level, the long-term potentiation and long-term depression.

Interference theory

In memory experiments with nonsense syllables noticed that the memory performance of subjects decreased the more, the more lists they had learned in advance. Apparently worked prior learning prejudicial to later. Such interference ( interference ) is called proactive inhibition. In contrast, a backward interference is called retroactive inhibition and describes the impairment of memory of past information by newer ones.

Such impairments occur mainly in learning content, which is very similar.

Lack of adequate retrieval stimuli

Some memory researchers are of the opinion that from the long-term memory, nothing is lost and forgetting instead nothing more than a failure of retrieval of content from the memory.

The experience of on - the - tongue - recumbent information that are temporarily inaccessible, have on average, people often once a week and with increasing age. A possible explanation are conditions during learning. Basically, remembering is more successful if the stimuli that were present during learning are present, even when calling.

Other theories

• Trace theory of change: When saving already things are changing, we see, for example, an image with superimposed lines and save it as a star, not exactly what we see ( the markings ).
• Motivated Forgetting / Targeted forget: conscious or unconscious repression
• Theory of autonomous decay ( decay theory )

Peters principle: Forgot done selectively. Events are forgotten, depending on their emotional content. Things that are indifferent to us are forgotten faster than those that evoke strong emotions. Below that hold positive emotions make things more memorable than equally strong negative. The old days were, therefore, the good times, because selectively neutral and negative things are forgotten in favor of the positive.

Sudden inspiration: In various theories of forgetting plays an important role in information processing. So forget usually leads to a structuring of the contents of memory, that is, significant things concise. Against this background, Roy Tricity explains the sudden incident.

Forget caused by disease or trauma

Even forgetting may be caused by pathological changes in the brain. Often we speak in these cases of dementia. A well-known example of a dementia is Alzheimer's disease. The course is usually insidious and occurs with increasing age.

Event of a sudden loss of memory due to shock or accident is called amnesia, so you can "get lost " for example, several decades of life.

Non - forget - Can

A few people can not forget. In the U.S., a woman named Jill Price is famous since 2006 because of this ability. Researchers at the University of Irvine (USA) have the phenomenon of " Hyperthymestisches Syndrome": called (about exceptional memory ).