Remote memory and age: a review

The study of very long-term (remote) memory has recently received increased attention. This article reviews the findings obtained regarding remote memory and age, as well as the difficulties involved with each method of investigation. Some studies have found older people show somewhat poorer memory relative to the young, but this is typically found for both recent and remote events. Other studies have found older people's memory for remote information holds up well, although it is typically not superior to memory for recent information. Age deficits seem to be small, or even nonexistent, when this customarily naturally-acquired information is the basis of concern. There has been no substantial evidence upholding Ribot's Law, which postulates that material is forgotten in the reverse order in which it was acquired. While there are problems inherent in each of the methods thus far employed, the potential ecological validity of remote memory renders it worthy of further investigation.