Brief exposure to uncontrollable but not to controllable noise biases the retrieval of information from memory.
Female volunteers learned two lists containing a mixture of positive and negative trait words. Both lists were learned in a neutral mood. The first list was recalled in a neutral mood, and the second following a five-minute exposure to a tape of 'meaningful' noises, designed to simulate a busy office environment. Exposure to loud, uncontrollable noise caused a substantial increase in the proportion of negative trait words recalled from the second list, and also a worsening of mood, particularly an increase in tension. These effects were not seen in subjects exposed to controllable loud noise or to uncontrollable quiet noise. The memory bias following uncontrollable loud noise is qualitatively similar to that found in clinically depressed patients or following depressive mood induction procedures.
D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006380:Helplessness, Learned; D006801:Humans; D008569:Memory Disorders; D009622:Noise / Q000009:adverse effects*