Abnormal Forgetting

Abnormal forgetting not due to any one of the causes mentioned with reference to normal forgetting. It is mostly of recall amnesia type hence retention will be intact to a large extent. Due to certain unusual and motivating causes recalling is completely blocked. Anyway it was not due to self-consciousness or stage fright. The causes are: 

a) Exogenic or external factors 

b) Endogenic or internal factors 

Exogenic or External Factors: 

As said above, if the cause is an external one, it is said to be exogenic. For example, a severe injury to the brain like a shock resulting from a fall or a hit on the head will disturb the memory process badly. If the injury is severe and if affect the cortex, forgetting is more a retention amnesia than recall amnesia. But usually amnesia resulting from a shock is of recall type. 

Endogenic or Internal Factors:

Endogenic causes from within are known as Endogenic. The internal factors which cause forgetting are conflict, frustration, repression etc. the concept of ‘repression’ was introduces as a function of unconscious. Certain experiences which involve guilt, or shame or frustration or conflict are not palatable to the conscious mind. Such experiences are repressed to the unconscious mind unaware of us and hence they are forgotten. The individual will develop complete recall amnesia. All those forgotten which takes place because of such endogenic causes belong to recall amnesia. All those experiences can be brought out to conscious mind only by some special techniques, such as free association, death analysis, hypnosis and projective tests. According to Freud such forgetting is often caused by a very strong desire to forget in order to avoid an emotional conflict arising from certain experiences. It is nothing but a convenient forgetting but the intention is not conscious one. 

Apart from the above forms of hysterical amnesia (recall amnesia) we also come across many other forms of amnesia such as fugue, somnambulism etc. in fugue the individual suddenly forgets his name, places profession and such other details of his past and runs away to some other place and starts altogether a new life with a new name and profession. 

This may last for few days or a few months. Suddenly some incident may bring him back a complete memory of his past. Immediately the fugue state if forgotten. This kind of temporary period of disorientation of time, place, name and loss of memory for previous state is called fugue.