Understanding Psychology (10th Ed)

 
Module 22 
Forgetting: When Memory Fails 
235
 
Although the concepts of proactive and retroactive interference illustrate how 
material may be forgotten, they still do not explain whether forgetting is caused by 
the actual loss or modifi cation of information or by problems in the retrieval of 
information. Most research suggests that material that has apparently been lost 
because of interference can eventually be recalled if appropriate stimuli are presented 
(Tulving & Psotka, 1971; Anderson, 1981), but the question has not been fully 
answered.
Memory Dysfunctions: 
Affl
ictions of Forgetting
First you notice that you’re always misplacing things or that common nouns are 
evading you as stubbornly as the names of new acquaintances. Pretty soon you’re 
forgetting appointments and getting fl ustered when you drive in traffi c. On bad days 
you fi nd you can’t hold numbers in your mind long enough to dial the phone. You try 
valiantly to conceal your lapses, but they become ever more glaring. You crash your car. 
You spend whole mornings struggling to dress yourself properly. And even as you lose 
the ability to read or play the piano, you’re painfully aware of what’s happening to 
you. (Cowley, 2000, p. 46)
These memory problems are symptomatic of  Alzheimer’s disease  , an illness 
characterized in part by severe memory problems. Alzheimer’s is the fourth leading 
cause of death among adults in the United States, affecting an estimated 5 million 
people.
In the beginning, Alzheimer’s symptoms appear as simple forgetfulness of things 
such as appointments and birthdays. As the disease progresses, memory loss becomes 
more profound, and even the simplest tasks—such as using a telephone—are forgot-
ten. Ultimately, victims may lose their ability to speak or comprehend language, and 
physical deterioration sets in, leading to death. 
The causes of Alzheimer’s disease are not fully understood. Increasing evidence 
suggests that Alzheimer’s results from an inherited susceptibility to a defect in the 
production of the protein beta amyloid, which is necessary for the maintenance of 
nerve cell connections. When the synthesis of beta amyloid goes awry, large clumps 
of cells form, triggering infl ammation and the deterioration of nerve cells in the brain 
(Selkoe, 2002; Detoledo-Morrell, Stoub, & Wang, 2007; Horínek, Varjassyová, & Hort, 
2007; Selkoe, 2008; see Figure 4).