Alcohol and memory: Retrieval processes

The influence of alcohol intoxication on the retrieval of information from memory was investigated in nonalcoholic subjects. In Experiment 1, free-recall learning of a 60-word, categorized list was impaired by alcohol intoxication. Fewer categories and words within categories were recalled by intoxicated subjects, and providing category cues after the third trial produced significantly greater improvement in recall for intoxicated than for sober subjects. It was concluded that retrieval processes may have been impaired by alcohol intoxication, but that differences in strength of the memory traces might also account for the observed differences in recall. In Experiment 2, storage was equated so that the effects of alcohol on retrieval processes alone could be assessed. Free-recall and paired-associate lists were learned in a sober State and were retrieved 1 week later in either a sober or an intoxicated state. Neither speed, nor accuracy, nor the amount of benefit produced by cues was influenced by alcohol intoxication, whereas new learning was impaired. It was concluded that the retrieval stage of memory was not affected by alcohol.