The influence of emotional valence and motivation on socially shared retrieval-induced forgetting

Subjects: Psychology >> Social Psychology submitted time 2024-04-26

ZHANG Huan WANG Chen LI Junxia LIN Lin WU Jie

Abstract： Memories of individuals are typically encoded, stored, recalled, and reconstructed through direct or indirect interactions with others. Cuc et al. (2007) founded that during interactive retrieval, speakers’ selective recall of memories results in the forgetting of non-target information related to the retrieved information, a phenomenon known as retrieval-induced forgetting (RIF). Simultaneously, listeners in this interactive process are also influenced by the speakers’ selective recall, leading to the forgetting of relevant but not retrieved information, a phenomenon termed socially shared retrieval-induced forgetting (SS-RIF). Building on the intertwined connection between emotion, motivation, and memory, this study investigates the impact of emotional valence and motivation on socially shared retrieval-induced forgetting in the context of interactive retrieval.
In Experiment 1, emotional valence and item type were manipulated to explore the influence of emotional valence on socially shared retrieval-induced forgetting. The experiment employed a within-participants design of 3 (emotional valence: positive emotion, neutral emotion, negative emotion) × 4 (item type: Rp+, Rp−, Nrp+, Nrp−). The dependent variable was participants’ recall accuracy of items under the three emotional conditions. The results demonstrated that listeners exhibited socially shared retrieval-induced forgetting effects under positive and neutral emotions but not under negative emotions in the interactive retrieval practice paradigm. Additionally, the effect was more pronounced under positive emotions compared to neutral emotions, aligning with our Hypothesis 1.
Experiment 2 manipulated positive emotional motivation and item type to investigate the impact of motivation on socially shared retrieval-induced forgetting. The experiment employed a within-participants design of 2 (positive emotional motivation dimension: high-motivation with positive emotion, low-motivation with positive emotion) × 4 (item type: Rp+, Rp−, Nrp+, Nrp−). Results indicated that listeners exhibited socially shared retrieval-induced forgetting effects under both high- and low-motivation with positive emotional conditions, consistent with the findings of Experiment 1. Moreover, the level of socially shared retrieval-induced forgetting was significantly higher under high-motivation with positive emotions compared to low-motivation with positive emotions, supporting our Hypothesis 2.
These findings offer empirical support for comprehending the impact of emotional valence and motivation on socially shared retrieval-induced forgetting, underscoring the crucial role of emotion and motivation in memory outcomes during social interactive tasks.

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