Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 20, 2026

Disruption of Frontal Lobe Neural Synchrony During Cognitive Control by Alcohol Intoxication
Published on: February 6, 2019
The selective effects of alcohol on automatic and effortful memory processes
1Department of Psychiatry, Medical College of Pennsylvania/Hahnemann University School of Medicine, Eastern Pennsylvania Psychiatric Institute, Philadelphia 19129, USA. tracyj@wpo.auhs.edu
Abstract:
Automatic and effortful memory processes were evaluated in a 2-session, within-subjects design involving an alcohol challenge and a no-alcohol condition. Free recall of a 90-word list measured effortful processing. Estimation of word frequency from the same list measured automatic processing. Acute intoxication was hypothesized to diminish effortful but not automatic memory processes. Healthy, male volunteers (n = 36) completed the 2 conditions 1 week apart. Presentation frequency influenced both free recall and frequency estimation, with both measures increasing as presentation frequency increased. Free recall was significantly lower in the alcohol than in the no-alcohol condition, but frequency estimation was not differentially affected. The data showed that an alcohol challenge dissociated automatic and effortful memory processes in volunteers. The authors discuss potential neurobiological substrates that may account for alcohol's selective disruption of effortful, verbal, episodic memory processing.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
CNS Depressants: Alcohol and Nicotine
Interference and Decay
Interference occurs when competing memories hinder the retrieval of particular information. It can be classified into two types: proactive and retroactive interference. Proactive...
Implicit Memories
One key aspect of implicit...
Role of Cerebellum and Prefrontal Cortex in Memory
Automatic Processing and Automatic Social Behavior
Depressants
Alcohol is a common depressant that can induce a sense of relaxation and reduced inhibition at low doses. Contrary to its occasional...

