ERIC Number: EJ1194947
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2018-Nov
Pages: 5
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1072-0502
EISSN: N/A
Previously Rewarding Environments Enhance Incidental Memory Formation
Shneyer, Anatoly; Mendelsohn, Avi
Learning & Memory, v25 n11 p569-573 Nov 2018
Declarative memory performance is superior for items that were encoded in temporal proximity to reward delivery or expectancy. How reward-predicting contexts affect subsequent declarative memory formation in those contexts are, however, unknown. Using an ecological experimental setup in the form of a naturalistic driving simulator task, we examined the effect that previously rewarded environments may have on incidental memory formation. After driving in two distinct environments, one of which associated with monetary reward, participants drove again in the environments, which were embedded with unique images on billboards. A recognition test 24 h later demonstrated that incidental memory was superior for items presented in the reward-associated environment. These findings suggest that environmental cues imbued with incentive salience promote memory processes even in the absence of reward.
Descriptors: Memory, Incidental Learning, Concept Formation, Reinforcement, Cues, Foreign Countries, College Students
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press. 500 Sunnyside Boulevard, Woodbury, NY 11797-2924. Tel: 800-843-4388; Tel: 516-367-8800; Fax: 516-422-4097; e-mail: cshpres@cshl.edu; Web site: http://learnmem.cshlp.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Israel (Haifa)
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A