Abel, Magdalena and Baeuml, Karl-Heinz T. (2023) Item-method directed forgetting and perceived truth of news headlines. MEMORY, 31 (10). pp. 1371-1386. ISSN 0965-8211, 1464-0686
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Research on item-method directed forgetting (IMDF) suggests that memories can be voluntarily forgotten. IMDF is however usually examined with relatively simple study materials, such as single words or pictures. In the present study, we examined voluntary forgetting of news headlines from (presumably) untrustworthy sources. Experiment 1 found intact IMDF when to-be-forgotten headlines were characterised as untrustworthy and to-be-remembered headlines were characterised as trustworthy. Experiment 2 separated remember/forget cues and trustworthiness prompts. Forget cues alone had a large effect on memory, but only a small reducing effect on perceived truth. In contrast, trustworthiness prompts alone had essentially no effect on memory, but a large effect on perceived truth. Finally, Experiment 3 fully crossed forget/remember cues and trustworthiness prompts, revealing that forget cues can reduce memory irrespective of whether headlines are characterised as trustworthy or untrustworthy. Moreover, forget cues may bias source attributions, which can explain their small reducing effect on perceived truth. Overall, this work suggests that news headlines can be voluntarily forgotten. At least when people are motivated to forget information from untrustworthy sources, such forgetting may be helpful for curtailing the spread of false information.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | MISATTRIBUTION ERRORS; NEURAL MECHANISMS; SELF-REFERENCE; MEMORY; RECALL; RECOGNITION; FLUENCY; RECOLLECTION; INHIBITION; REPETITION; Voluntary forgetting; item-method directed forgetting; memory for news headlines; perceived truth |
| Subjects: | 100 Philosophy & psychology > 150 Psychology |
| Divisions: | Human Sciences > Institut für Psychologie > Lehrstuhl für Psychologie IV (Entwicklungs- und Kognitionspsychologie) - Prof. Dr. Karl-Heinz Bäuml |
| Depositing User: | Dr. Gernot Deinzer |
| Date Deposited: | 22 Feb 2024 05:19 |
| Last Modified: | 22 Feb 2024 05:19 |
| URI: | https://pred.uni-regensburg.de/id/eprint/58936 |
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