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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 29, 2026

Multimedia Battery for Assessment of Cognitive and Basic Skills in Mathematics (BM-PROMA)

Multimedia Battery for Assessment of Cognitive and Basic Skills in Mathematics (BM-PROMA)

Published on: August 28, 2021

Retrieval-induced forgetting of arithmetic facts.

Jamie I D Campbell¹, Valerie A Thompson

¹Department of Psychology, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. jamie.campbell@usask.ca

Journal of Experimental Psychology. Learning, Memory, and Cognition

|August 31, 2011

Summary

Retrieval-induced forgetting (RIF) impacts arithmetic memory. Practicing multiplication facts impairs recall of related addition facts, especially for simple sums, suggesting an inhibitory memory process.

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Area of Science:

Cognitive Psychology
Human Memory Research
Mathematical Cognition

Background:

Retrieval-induced forgetting (RIF) is a known memory phenomenon.
RIF's effect on arithmetic fact memory is largely unexamined.

Purpose of the Study:

Investigate RIF of addition facts using multiplication practice.
Explore the mechanisms and conditions of RIF in arithmetic memory.

Main Methods:

Two experiments examined RIF of addition facts (e.g., 2 + 3 = 5) after practicing multiplication facts (e.g., 2 × 3 = 6).
Measured response times to assess forgetting.
Varied practice conditions (retrieval vs. study) and number formats (digits vs. words).

Main Results:

Significant RIF observed for high-strength, small-number addition facts (sums ≤ 10).
RIF occurred due to multiplication retrieval, not study, indicating an inhibitory process.
RIF persisted across different number formats (word and digit), suggesting a shared semantic network.

Conclusions:

Multiplication fact retrieval induces RIF in related addition facts, particularly for high-strength, small-number facts.
An inhibitory mechanism underlies RIF in arithmetic memory.
Arithmetic facts are stored in an interconnected semantic network, with RIF being an integral part of retrieval.