How do we explain why people forget?

Encoding failure Decay of memory trace Retrieval failure Forgetting cannot be explained (alone) by the decay of memory traces. Rather, processes of interference weaken or destroy the link of retrieval cues to the memory trace (retroactively or proactively), rendering the memory trance permanently inaccessible. Retrieval-induced forgetting (RIF) illustrates one way how the efficiency of a retrieval cue may change over time.