Negative emotional memories are difficult to forget, and their persistence may lead to the development of different anxiety or fear-related disorders. Current memory interventions often require individuals to recall negative information. Yet these approaches can be problematic if they also induce distress. One important question, then, is whether there are techniques that can access and modify emotional memories indirectly. To this end, we examined if recalling neutral semantic memories leads to retrieval-induced forgetting of related negative memories. In Phase 1, participants studied eight categorized word lists comprised of an equal number of negative and neutral words. To avoid re-exposing individuals to negative material, participants then performed a semantic memory retrieval task in which they generated new neutral words from half of the categories studied in Phase 1. We found that recalling neutral words from semantic memory induced forgetting of recently studied and related neutral and negative words. We also found that unsuccessful word generation was associated with greater retrieval-induced forgetting irrespective of emotional valence. This result suggests that, even when engaging semantic memory, effortful retrieval may enhance inhibitory processes that lead to forgetting. Altogether, our findings reveal a semantic retrieval-based strategy for weakening negative memories.
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