logo
Dark
logo
Adult ADHD
Dark
ADHD Medication Meta-analysis
Bupropion for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in adults (Review)
Atomoxetine in ADHD Patients who use Marijuana
Do individuals with ADHD become more disinhibited with alcohol?
The Prevalence and Correlates of Adult ADHD in the United States: Results From the National Comorbidity Survey Replication
Cross-national prevalence and correlates of adult attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder
Comorbidity in adults with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder
Toward systems neuroscience of ADHD: a meta-analysis of 55 fMRI studies
Adult ADHD & MRI
ADHD and Executive Function
Persistent ADHD Risk Factors
Does adult ADHD start during childhood?
Evidence for late onset ADHD
ADHD remission patterns in young adults
Persistent and late onset ADHD
Predictors of ADHD persistence in adulthood
Socioeconomic status and ADHD risk
Which symptoms resolve first in ADHD?
ADHD: Working Memory and Alpha Waves
Fitness and Executive Function in ADHD
Dopamine Receptors and ADHD
Anxiety, ADHD, and Cognitive Functioning
Executive functioning in adult ADHD: a meta-analytic review
ADHD Symptoms and Emotional Intelligence
ADHD, Attention, and Task Switching
Dopamine and Motivation in ADHD
ADHD, working memory, and verbal learning
ADHD and Forgetting
Sluggish Cognitive Tempo, ADHD, and Mind-Wandering
Medication and Training for Working Memory in ADHD
Long-Term Memory Performance in Adult ADHD
ADHD Symptoms and the Reward System
ADHD in high IQ adults
Can IQ compensate for ADHD symptoms?
IQ and ADHD have separate genetics
How ADHD and Test Taking Speed Affect Intelligence Testing
How IQ Compensates for ADHD in Executive Function
ADHD and estimated life expectancy
Irritability in ADHD
ADHD prevalence among adults with substance use disorder
Driving Anger and Driving Behavior in Adults With ADHD
Adult ADHD and Employment Stats
ADHD among adult workers
Maladaptive Daydreaming and Mental Health
Emotion dysregulation in adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: a meta-analysis
ADHD and Comorbidity Statistics
ADHD and Empathy in Adults
Effects of ADHD in Parents
How do people with ADHD handle emotions?
Daydreaming and Attention in ADHD
Self-Esteem, Self-Efficacy, and Resources in Adults With ADHD
ADHD and Adjusting to College Life
ADHD, Executive Function, and Employment
ADHD and Anxiety: Clinical Significance and Treatment Implications
Vitamins, Minerals, and ADHD
Ritalin and Driving Ability
Does Ritalin improve your driving?
ADHD and Driving in Young Adults
Is Ritalin or Adderall better for driving?
Driving with ADHD and Alcohol
Do non-stimulant medications work for adult ADHD?
Ritalin: The effects of gender and alcohol
Ritalin reduces anxiety in cognitive test
Ritalin, reaction time, and response inhibition in healthy adults
Guanfacine vs Adderall for Adult ADHD
Venlafaxine for Adult ADHD
Ritalin may reduce anxiety in anxious adults without ADHD
Group CBT for Adult ADHD
Does CBT work well with medication for Adult ADHD?
CBT vs. Relaxation for Adult ADHD
ADHD and Skills Training Therapy
Mindfulness vs psychoeducation in adult ADHD: a randomized controlled trial
ADHD Psychotherapy and Skills Training
Structured Group Psychotherapy for ADHD
Efficacy of Meta-Cognitive Therapy (MCT) for Adult ADHD
Mindfulness CBT for ADHD
ADHD Medication and Blood Pressure
Working Memory and College Performance
Ritalin, Adderall, and Risks in Pregnancy
Atomoxetine in Adults with ADHD: Two Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Studies
Once-Daily Atomoxetine for Adult Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
Emotional dysregulation in adult ADHD and response to atomoxetine
Can you drink alcohol with Strattera (atomoxetine)?
Strattera and Social Anxiety in Adults
Effects of stimulants and atomoxetine on emotional lability in adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Atomoxetine treatment of adults with ADHD and comorbid alcohol use disorders
ADHD Meds & Heart Risk in Adults
Does Ritalin increase the risk of mania in those with Bipolar Disorder?
How often do teenagers use stimulants with other substances?
Irritability with Stimulants
Stimulant Medication and Substance Use Outcomes: A Meta-analysis

Visual Abstract

ADHD and retrieval-induced forgetting: evidence for a deficit in the inhibitory control of memory

ADHD and Forgetting

Benjamin C Storm , Holly A White
Summarized by:
Charles Li, MD
August 31, 2023
study source
Memory
Apr 2010
🔎
What they studied
Does ADHD affect our longer-term memory?
đź’ˇ
What they found
Those with ADHD had significantly more difficulty retrieving memories in a test that required them to inhibit incorrect answers.
👩‍⚕️
What this means
These results highlight new deficits for those with ADHD. It may be related to the known link between ADHD and inhibition difficulties.

ADHD and retrieval-induced forgetting: evidence for a deficit in the inhibitory control of memory

Objectives

This study examined whether ADHD could affect longer-term memory.

There is some rationale for a link between ADHD and difficulties in long-term memory.

ADHD is known to be linked with difficulties in inhibition and impulsivity. Inhibition is known to play a role in the retrieval of memories. When we try to remember a specific item, we rely on inhibition to keep ourselves from retrieving other similar memories.

“
In order to retrieve a target item from memory, competing items must be selected against, or inhibited. Although inhibition may facilitate the retrieval of target items, it may also impair the retrieval of non-target items, a phenomenon referred to as retrieval-induced for- getting
Benjamin C Storm and Holly A White. 2010
Study Quote
Benjamin C Storm and Holly A White. 2010

Research on retrieval-induced forgetting has shown that the selective retrieval of some information can cause the forgetting of other information. Such forgetting is believed to result from inhibitory processes that function to resolve interference during retrieval. The current study exa...

Show More

Methods

In order to study this, researchers performed a memory test on 40 adults with ADHD and compare the results to 40 adults without ADHD.

The test that they used asked the participants to memorizecategories and items. They then tested participants’ abilities to remember the items based on the category as a prompt.

Study Quote
Benjamin C Storm and Holly A White. 2010

A total of 40 adults with ADHD and 40 adults without ADHD participated in a standard retrieval-induced forgetting experiment. Critically, half of the items were tested using category cues and the other half of the items were tested using category-plus-one-letter-stem cues.

Results

The test results showed that in the more difficult condition, both those with ADHD and those without ADHD struggled to remember the item being tested. In this condition, participants were asked to remember the item based just on the category. There was no significant difference between those with ADHD and those without ADHD.

However, when participants were given the first letter of the item, almost like getting a clue during a quiz, those without ADHD were significantly more likely to guess the correct item than those with ADHD.

Study Quote
Benjamin C Storm and Holly A White. 2010

Whereas both ADHD and non-ADHD participants demonstrated retrieval-induced forgetting on the final category-cued recall test, only non-ADHD participants demonstrated retrieval-induced forgetting on the final category-plus-stem-cued recall test.

Conclusions

Based on these results, the authors concluded that this is evidence of ADHD affecting memory.

The authors theorized that much of this may be due to inhibition since the specific test used in the study relied on the inhibition of incorrect answers.

“
only non-ADHD participants demonstrated significant levels of retrieval-induced forgetting on the category-plus-stem-cued recall test. These results suggest that individuals with ADHD do have a deficit in the inhibitory control of memory but that this deficiency may only be apparent in studies that employ a final test that controls for output interference
Benjamin C Storm and Holly A White. 2010

However, more research is needed to understand the mechanism of this phenomenon.

The study adds to what we already know about working memory. Those with ADHD have significant difficulties with working memory, the small amount of easily retrievable memory we use for a task:

What is working memory?

Study Quote
Benjamin C Storm and Holly A White. 2010

These results suggest that individuals with ADHD do have a deficit in the inhibitory control of memory, but that this deficit may only be apparent when output interference is adequately controlled on the final test.