Implicit memory: intention and awareness revisited

Butler, L. T. and Berry, D. C. (2001) Implicit memory: intention and awareness revisited. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 5 (5). pp. 192-197. ISSN 1364-6613 doi: 10.1016/S1364-6613(00)01636-3

Abstract/Summary

One of the major developments in memory research in the past decade or so has been a growing interest in implicit memory – task performance that is not accompanied by conscious or intentional recollection. In this article, we examine evidence for perceptual and conceptual implicit memory, using the accepted definitions, and suggest that there is in fact a lack of strong evidence for implicit memory in normal subjects. If more convincing evidence cannot be obtained, one solution might be to modify the current terminology. We suggest that the term implicit memory might have outgrown its usefulness as an overall descriptor.