Inhibitory Theory: Assumptions, Findings, and Relevance to Interventions
Lynn Hasher, Karen L. Campbell
Abstract
Inhibitory theory proposes three major functions that are required to control overactivation in response to cues in the environment and thought. Evidence suggests that each function, Access, Deletion, and Restraint, is reduced in efficiency in healthy older adults. These reductions can together account for slowing, reduced working memory capacity, and increased susceptibility to interference at retrieval – all memory phenomena associated with aging. These reductions also result in greater knowledge of the context in which events occur as well as in greater usage of that information. Opportunities for positive interventions tied to these inefficiencies are also noted.
Topics & Concepts
Relevance (law)Psychological interventionContext (archaeology)Inhibitory controlInhibitory postsynaptic potentialFunction (biology)Cognitive psychologyPsychologyRelevance theoryOrder (exchange)Working memoryNeuroscienceCognitionBiologyPolitical scienceEconomicsFinanceLawPaleontologyEvolutionary biologyPsychiatryNeural and Behavioral Psychology StudiesDementia and Cognitive Impairment ResearchMemory and Neural Mechanisms