Abstract: This research employs the self-reference effect paradigm and the list method of directed forgetting, to study the directed forgetting under self- referential processing and other-referential processing conditions. The results show that: (1) there is no significant difference in the general recall performance between the two processing conditions in the paradigm of directed forgetting. (2) Within the list method of directed forgetting, the difference between the two processing conditions is revealed that the effect of directed forgetting appears under the self-referential processing condition, whereas not under other-referential processing condition. This may suggest that the effect of inhibition due to the instruction of directed forgetting is strong enough for memory materials with high distinctness under the self-referential processing to produce the directed forgetting effect.

Key words: self, directed forgetting, self-reference effect