Under what conditions would we conclude that retrieval-induced forgetting was observed? Note that: RP+ items = practiced items from practiced categories, RP- items = unpracticed items from practiced categories, NRP items = unpracticed items from unpracticed categories

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The question asks under what conditions we would conclude that retrieval-induced forgetting (RIF) was observed, with RP+ items being practiced items from practiced categories, RP- items being unpracticed items from practiced categories, and NRP items being unpracticed items from unpracticed categories.
Option 1: 'If NRP items perform worse than RP+ items' — This compares unpracticed items from unpracticed categories to practiced items from practiced categories. While RP+ items are often recalled better due to practice, this comparison does not directly establish RIF, which is about the relative forgetting of RP- items relative to a baseline. So this condition does not reliably indicate RIF.
Option 2: 'If RP- items perform worse than RP+ items' — It is common that RP+ items are recalled better than RP- items due to practice, but RIF is not established by this difference alone. This shows a benefit of practice for RP+ over RP-, not evidence of forgetting caused by retrieval of related items. Therefore this does not demonstrate RIF by itself.
Option 3: 'If NRP items perform worse than RP- items' — This would imply that unpracticed items from unpracticed categories are recalled worse than unpracticed items from practiced categories, which is not the classic signature of RIF. In RIF, the critical comparison is RP- vs NRP, not RP- vs NRP in this direction.
Option 4: 'If RP- items perform worse than NRP items' — This is the classic criterion for observing retrieval-induced forgetting: retrieving some items (RP+) causes inhibition that leads to poorer recall for the related but unpracticed items (RP-) compared to a baseline of unpracticed items from unpracticed categories (NRP). When RP- items are worse than NRP items, it indicates that retrieval practice impaired the memory for related unpracticed items.
In summary, the essence of RIF is a relative drop in recall for RP- items compared to baseline NRP items; therefore, Option 4 correctly signals RIF, while Options 1–3 do not align with the established diagnostic comparison for retrieval-induced forgetting.

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

Under what conditions would we conclude that retrieval-induced forgetting was observed? Note that: RP+ items = practiced items from practiced categories, RP- items = unpracticed items from practiced categories, NRP items = unpracticed items from unpracticed categories

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