It may seem that remembering and forgetting reflect two ends of a single continuum—that to remember is to avoid forgetting.  In many instances, however, forgetting plays an essential and adaptive role in our ability to remember.  A major focus of our research is to gain a better understanding of the mechanisms that underlie the forgetting of unwanted and irrelevant information in memory.  We are also interested in the interplay of memory and other cognitive processes, as well as the role of memory in educational, social, and legal settings. 

Inhibitory Processes in Memory

As counterintuitive as it might seem, forgetting is critical for the efficient and adaptive functioning of memory.  Without some means of suppressing or setting aside information that has become outdated or irrelevant, it would become increasingly difficult to remember new and relevant information.  One process that appears to underlie this adaptive form of forgetting is inhibition (Anderson, 2003; Bjork, Bjork, & Anderson, 1998).  When attempting to retrieve a target item from memory, non-target items associated with the same retrieval cue are also activated, creating competition and requiring that those competing items be selected against, or inhibited.  This inhibition may explain a rather unintuitive observation—that retrieving some items from memory causes the forgetting of other items in memory, a phenomenon known as retrieval-induced forgetting (Anderson, Bjork, & Bjork, 1994).  Although inhibition may seem like a reasonable explanation of retrieval-induced forgetting, others have argued that it can be explained by factors such as associative interference.  My research has strongly supported the inhibitory account of retrieval-induced forgetting and helped to elucidate the mechanisms underlying such forgetting (e.g., Storm, Bjork, & Bjork, 2005; 2007; 2008; Storm, Bjork, Bjork, & Nestojko, 2006; Storm & Nestojko, 2009).  Here at UIC we are continuing to explore the important role of inhibition in memory.  Issues under ongoing investigation include the role of inhibition in creative problem solving, individual differences in inhibitory control (e.g., ADHD), intentional forms of forgetting (e.g., thought suppression, directed forgetting), the role of inhibition in future simulation, and the mechanisms by which inhibited memories can be recovered.

Memory, Metamemory, and Learning

There is great potential to apply the principles of cognitive psychology to enhance learning.  In educational contexts, students and teachers tend to create conditions of learning that facilitate effortless acquisition and high levels of immediate performance.  At a delay, however, it becomes increasingly clear that these conditions are not nearly as effective as they appear to be (Bjork, 1994, 1999).  The crux of the problem seems to lie in people’s view of forgetting as the undoing of learning, rather than as a critical component in the creation of learning.  In fact, research has shown that manipulations that induce forgetting between opportunities to learn (e.g., spacing and contextual interference) often lead to better long-term retention than manipulations that prevent forgetting.  In this line of research we are exploring the mechanisms by which forgetting and difficulty serve as enablers of future learning.  Issues under investigation include spacing, generation (Bjork, DeWinstanley, & Storm, 2007), testing (Storm, Friedman, & Bjork, in preparation), test scheduling (Storm, Bjork, & Storm, in press), highlighting (Storm, Bjork, Kornel, & Bjork, in preparation), the use of powerpoint, and various metamemory considerations related to learning (e.g., Storm, Bjork, & Castel, in preparation). 

Memory in Social and Legal Contexts 

In this relatively new line of work we are exploring the role of memory in social and legal settings.  Our interests include the suppression and recovery of traumatic and non-traumatic information in memory, the processes by which memories are shaped and distorted over time and with suggestion, and the consequences of withholding information during interpersonal interaction.  We are also interested in people’s beliefs and predictions about memory.  For example, to what extent can a person’s confidence in a memory predict the accuracy of that memory?  And to what extent are we aware of the unconscious biases that influence us? 

Prospective Students

-Graduate Student: The deadline to apply to UIC's Ph.D. program is December 15th, 2009.  For more information, please visit the department website [http://www.psch.uic.edu] or contact Benjamin Storm at bstorm@uic.edu.