Antero- and
retrograde amnesia are observed as side effects of most types of
benzodiazepines. They have rarely been investigated with respect to physical and personality factors, or to prior experiences, present expectations, and emotional states of the subjects, all of which are well known to modify
drug response. By reviewing research on
benzodiazepine-induced changes of memory in preoperative, anxious, and depressed patients as well as in healthy subjects, it is demonstrated that differences in
benzodiazepine-induced amnesic effects may depend on: 1. subject variables like predrug level of anxiety, depressive symptomatology, memory capacity, experiences with
benzodiazepine-type drugs, and expectations of treatment outcome, and secondary factors like social environment and treatment setting 2. interactions between these subject variables and type of schedule (times of acquisition, treatment, and testing), type of learning material, and dose of
drug. 3. the extent of
benzodiazepine-induced changes in anxiety or depression, cortical and emotional arousal (alertness and activity) as well as physiological effects of
benzodiazepines Special emphasis should be placed on the investigation of
drug-induced changes of covariation between psychological measures which may provide valuable information for differential prediction and on mechanisms of
drug action.