[Forgetting of word associations in relation to indicators of emotionality. A possibility for evaluating Freud's...

In replication of the well-known study by Levinger & Clark, 30 subjects were presented a list with 60 words under several conditions. In the first part of the experiment they had to tell the first word which came to mind as a response to the stimuli read by the experimenter. Reaction times and skin conductance reactions (SCRs) during associations were recorded. Immediately afterwards the list was read again with the instruction to recall the associations given before. In part 2 of the study, one week later, subjects had to recall again their first associations; in addition, they scaled the emotionality of the word stimuli. Intraindividual correlations were computed for indices of emotionality (reaction time, SCR, perceived emotionality) and forgetting in both short-term and long-term memory. Associations accompanied by larger electrodermal reaction and showing longer reaction time were more likely to be forgotten both for short and long intervals. This is in line with Freuds concept of repression. However, alternative explanations should also be discussed.