Which of the following would be most likely to produce forgetting of a given event?

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BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

Let's break down the question and each answer option in terms of what we know about hippocampal involvement in memory consolidation.
Option 1: 'If the hippocampus is damaged a short time after the event' — This is a strong candidate for causing forgetting because the hippocampus is crucial for the initial consolidation of new episodic memories. Damage soon after encoding disrupts this consolidation process, leading to poor long-term recall of the event. The memory may never be properly stored in cortex, resulting in forgetting.
Option 2: 'Damaging the hippocampus never causes forgetting of an event' — This is incorrect. The hippocampus is essential for forming and stabilizing new memories; damage can impair memory formation or consolidation, leading to forgetting. Saying it never causes forgetting ignores well-established evidence of hippocampal role.
Option 3: 'If the hippocampus is damaged a long time after the event' — While damage long after encoding can affect retrieval or reconsolidation, the memory is typically already consolidated; thus forgetting the event is less likely than when damage occurs during the initial consolidation window. This option underestimates the impact of timing and is not as strong an inducer of forgetting as damage soon after encoding.
Option 4: 'If the hippocampus is damaged at any time after the event' — This overstates the effect. After a long delay, memories are often more resistant to forgetting due to cortical storage and reorganization; not all post-event hippocampal damage wipes memories, so this claim is too broad and thus inaccurate as a general rule.
In summary, the timing of hippocampal damage matters most for forgetting: early disruption during consolidation (shortly after encoding) is most likely to produce forgetting, making option 1 the best choice among the given alternatives.

PSYC20007_2025_SM2 Supplementary or Special Exam: Cognitive Psychology (PSYC20007_2025_SM2)- Requires Respondus LockDown Browser

Which of the following would be most likely to produce forgetting of a given event?

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