Inhibition in memory

In the past 20 years, a new approach to forgetting has been proposed, based on the notion of inhibition. According to this view forgetting is partly due to a process of inhibitory control. In this chapter, I review the current status of this account, discussing the evidence that has been proposed as well as the counterarguments that have been made. I show that the paradigms that are likely to generate the best evidence for inhibition are the retrieval‐induced forgetting paradigm and the think/no‐think paradigm. Other paradigms, such as directed forgetting and part‐list cuing, seem to be better explained using other memory principles. I conclude that there is a need for a consistent and preferably formalized model that combines inhibition and competition as principal factors in forgetting.