Social metacognitive judgments: The role of retrieval-induced forgetting in person memory and impressions

Retrieval is a “memory modifier” (R.A. Bjork, 1975) in two senses: information retrieved from memory becomes more recallable; and, other information associated with the same cues becomes less recallable. Over time, therefore, retrieval processes act to update, shape, and sometimes distort our memories, including, presumably, memories involved in our feelings toward others. This paper reports several experiments exploring the role of retrieval-induced forgetting in maintaining and modifying impressions; more specifically, whether we monitor or use the retrieval accessibility of memories about other people to make and adjust our impressions of them. Participants who practiced retrieving neutral characteristics associated with target individuals exhibited retrieval-induced forgetting of positive or negative characteristics also associated with such individuals, but such impaired retrieval did not affect subsequent likeability ratings. Findings suggest that impairing retrieval access to specific information does not, in of itself, lead to changes in judgments originally based on such information.