Retrieval of emotional memories

Differential effects of clonazepam on declarative memory formation and face recognition

Benzodiazepines are commonly used drugs to treat anxiety in crime witnesses. These increase GABA inhibitory effects, which impairs aversive memory encoding and consolidation. Eyewitness memory is essential in justice. However, memory is malleable leading to false memories that could cause a selection of an innocent in a lineup. Here, we studied whether a low dose of Clonazepam impairs memory encoding as well as consolidation of faces and narrative of the event. We performed two experiments using a double-blind and between subject design (N = 216). Day 1: subjects watched a crime video and received Clonazepam 0.25 mg (CLZ group) or placebo (PLC group) before (Exp. 1) or after the video (Exp. 2) to assess the effect on encoding and consolidation. One week later, the memory was assessed using a present and absent target lineup and asking for a free recall. Regarding encoding, we found that in the CLZ group memory was impaired in the free recall task, while no differences were found for recognition memory. Regarding consolidation, we did not observe memory measures that were affected by this dose of benzodiazepines. The results suggest that while some aspects of eyewitness memory could be modulated even with low doses of benzodiazepine, others could not be affected. More studies should be performed with higher doses of CLZ similar to those administered in real life. These results are relevant in the judicial field to assess the reliability of the eyewitness elections under the effects of this drug.

Test-Retest Reliability of EEG Aperiodic Components in Resting and Mental Task States

Aperiodic activity is derived from the electroencephalography (EEG) power spectrum and reflects changes in the slope and shifts of the broadband spectrum. Studies have shown inconsistent test-retest reliability of the aperiodic components. This study systematically measured how the test-retest reliability of the aperiodic components was affected by data duration (1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 min), states (resting with eyes closed, resting with eyes open, performing mental arithmetic, recalling the events of the day, and mentally singing songs), and methods (the Fitting Oscillations and One-Over-F (FOOOF) and Linear Mixed-Effects Regression (LMER)) at both short (90-min) and long (one-month) intervals. The results showed that aperiodic components had fair, good, or excellent test-retest reliability (ranging from 0.53 to 0.91) at both short and long intervals. It is recommended that better reliability of the aperiodic components be obtained using data durations longer than 3 min, the resting state with eyes closed, the mental arithmetic task state, and the LMER method.

The autobiographical memory system and chronic pain: A neurocognitive framework for the initiation and maintenance of chronic pain

Chronic pain affects approximately 20% of the world's population, exerting a substantial burden on the affected individual, their families, and healthcare systems globally. Deficits in autobiographical memory have been identified among individuals living with chronic pain, and even found to pose a risk for the transition to chronicity. Recent neuroimaging studies have simultaneously implicated common brain regions central to autobiographical memory processing in the maintenance of and susceptibility to chronic pain. The present review proposes a novel neurocognitive framework for chronic pain explained by mechanisms underlying the autobiographical memory system. Here, we 1) summarize the current literature on autobiographical memory in pain, 2) discuss the role of the hippocampus and cortical brain regions including the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, anterior temporal lobe, and amygdala in relation to autobiographical memory, memory schemas, emotional processing, and pain, 3) synthesize these findings in a neurocognitive framework that explains these relationships and their implications for patients' pain outcomes, and 4) propose translational directions for the prevention, management, and treatment of chronic pain.

Trichotomy revisited: A monolithic theory of attentional control

The control of attention was long held to reflect the influence of two competing mechanisms of assigning priority, one goal-directed and the other stimulus-driven. Learning-dependent influences on the control of attention that could not be attributed to either of those two established mechanisms of control gave rise to the concept of selection history and a corresponding third mechanism of attentional control. The trichotomy framework that ensued has come to dominate theories of attentional control over the past decade, replacing the historical dichotomy. In this theoretical review, I readily affirm that distinctions between the influence of goals, salience, and selection history are substantive and meaningful, and that abandoning the dichotomy between goal-directed and stimulus-driven mechanisms of control was appropriate. I do, however, question whether a theoretical trichotomy is the right answer to the problem posed by selection history. If we reframe the influence of goals and selection history as different flavors of memory-dependent modulations of attentional priority and if we characterize the influence of salience as a consequence of insufficient competition from such memory-dependent sources of priority, it is possible to account for a wide range of attention-related phenomena with only one mechanism of control. The monolithic framework for the control of attention that I propose offers several concrete advantages over a trichotomy framework, which I explore here.

Effect of popular songs from the reminiscence bump as autobiographical memory cues in aging: a preliminary study using EEG

Introduction

Music has the capacity to evoke emotions and memories. This capacity is influenced by whether or not the music is from the reminiscence bump (RB) period. However, research on the neural correlates of the processes of evoking autobiographical memories through songs is scant. The aim of this study was to analyze the differences at the level of frequency band activation in two situations: (1) whether or not the song is able to generate a memory; and (2) whether or not the song is from the RB period.

Methods

A total of 35 older adults (22 women, age range: 61-73 years) listened to 10 thirty-second musical clips that coincided with the period of their RB and 10 from the immediately subsequent 5 years (non-RB). To record the EEG signal, a brain-computer interface (BCI) with 14 channels was used. The signal was recorded during the 30-seconds of listening to each music clip.

Results

The results showed differences in the activation levels of the frequency bands in the frontal and temporal regions. It was also found that the non-retrieval of a memory in response to a song clip showed a greater activation of low frequency waves in the frontal region, compared to the trials that did generate a memory.

Discussion

These results suggest the importance of analyzing not only brain activation, but also neuronal functional connectivity at older ages, in order to better understand cognitive and emotional functions in aging.

Medial temporal lobe functional network architecture supports sleep-related emotional memory processing in older adults

Memory consolidation occurs via reactivation of a hippocampal index during non-rapid eye movement slow-wave sleep (NREM SWS) which binds attributes of an experience existing within cortical modules. For memories containing emotional content, hippocampal-amygdala dynamics facilitate consolidation over a sleep bout. This study tested if modularity and centrality-graph theoretical measures that index the level of segregation/integration in a system and the relative import of its nodes-map onto central tenets of memory consolidation theory and sleep-related processing. Findings indicate that greater network integration is tied to overnight emotional memory retention via NREM SWS expression. Greater hippocampal and amygdala influence over network organization supports emotional memory retention, and hippocampal or amygdala control over information flow are differentially associated with distinct stages of memory processing. These centrality measures are also tied to the local expression and coupling of key sleep oscillations tied to sleep-dependent memory consolidation. These findings suggest that measures of intrinsic network connectivity may predict the capacity of brain functional networks to acquire, consolidate, and retrieve emotional memories.

Context reexposure to bolster contextual dependency of emotional episodic memory

Contextual overgeneralization of emotional memory is a core aspect of anxiety disorders. Identifying methods to enhance contextual dependency of emotional memory is therefore of significant clinical interest. Animal research points to a promising approach: reexposure to the context in which fear is acquired reduces generalization to other contexts. However, the exact conditions for this effect are unknown, complicating translation to effective interventions. Most notably, exposure to a context that resembles-but is not identical to-the learning context may diminish contextual dependency of memory by integration of additional contextual cues. Here, we therefore assessed in a large-scale study (N = 180) whether context reexposure enhances contextual dependency of emotional episodic memory whereas exposure to a similar context impairs it. We also tested whether relatively strong memory retrieval during context (re)exposure amplifies these effects. We replicated prior research showing that correct recognition depends on context and contextual dependency is lower for emotional than neutral memories. However, exposure to the encoding context or a similar context did not affect contextual dependency of memory, and retrieval strength did not interact with such effects. Thorough insight into factors underlying the effects of context (re)exposure on contextual dependency seems key to eventually attain a memory recontextualization intervention.

Persistent Neurological, Dissociative, and Amnestic Symptoms Following a Mild Traumatic Brain Injury in an Adolescent: A Complex Case of Conversion Disorder

The diagnosis of conversion disorder may be given to patients with unexplained neurological symptoms after the exclusion of medical and organic etiologies, suggesting a psychiatric etiology. It requires a thorough examination of all contributing factors across the biopsychosocial model. With a variety of possible presentations, the evaluation and treatment of conversion disorder should reflect its complexity. This case report describes a case of conversion disorder complicated by mild traumatic brain injury and acute psychological re-traumatization in an adolescent with social anxiety and focuses on the connection between symptoms of conversion and dissociation with trauma and memory to form an understanding of the unique presentation and treatment of this condition.

Hemodynamic correlates of emotion regulation in frontal lobe epilepsy patients and healthy participants

The ability to regulate emotions is indispensable for maintaining psychological health. It heavily relies on frontal lobe functions which are disrupted in frontal lobe epilepsy. Accordingly, emotional dysregulation and use of maladaptive emotion regulation strategies have been reported in frontal lobe epilepsy patients. Therefore, it is of clinical and scientific interest to investigate emotion regulation in frontal lobe epilepsy. We studied neural correlates of upregulating and downregulating emotions toward aversive pictures through reappraisal in 18 frontal lobe epilepsy patients and 17 healthy controls using functional magnetic resonance imaging. Patients tended to report more difficulties with impulse control than controls. On the neural level, patients had diminished activity during upregulation in distributed left-sided regions, including ventrolateral and dorsomedial prefrontal cortex, angular gyrus and anterior temporal gyrus. Patients also showed less activity than controls in the left precuneus for upregulation compared to downregulation. Unlike controls, they displayed no task-related activity changes in the left amygdala, whereas the right amygdala showed task-related modulations in both groups. Upregulation-related activity changes in the left inferior frontal gyrus, insula, orbitofrontal cortex, anterior and posterior cingulate cortex, and precuneus were correlated with questionnaire data on habitual emotion regulation. Our results show that structural or functional impairments in the frontal lobes disrupt neural mechanisms underlying emotion regulation through reappraisal throughout the brain, including posterior regions involved in semantic control. Findings on the amygdala as a major target of emotion regulation are in line with the view that specifically the left amygdala is connected with semantic processing networks.

Quantifying the retention of emotions across story retellings

Story retelling is a fundamental medium for the transmission of information between individuals and among social groups. Besides conveying factual information, stories also contain affective information. Though natural language processing techniques have advanced considerably in recent years, the extent to which machines can be trained to identify and track emotions across retellings is unknown. This study leverages the powerful RoBERTa model, based on a transformer architecture, to derive emotion-rich story embeddings from a unique dataset of 25,728 story retellings. The initial stories were centered around five emotional events (joy, sadness, embarrassment, risk, and disgust-though the stories did not contain these emotion words) and three intensities (high, medium, and low). Our results indicate (1) that RoBERTa can identify emotions in stories it was not trained on, (2) that the five emotions and their intensities are preserved when they are transmitted in the form of retellings, (3) that the emotions in stories are increasingly well-preserved as they experience additional retellings, and (4) that among the five emotions, risk and disgust are least well-preserved, compared with joy, sadness, and embarrassment. This work is a first step toward quantifying situation-driven emotions with machines.

Psychopathic personality traits are linked to reduced false memories for negative events

Individuals scoring high on psychopathic personality traits process emotional material to a different extent than individuals with few psychopathic traits. Evidence exists that these individuals have impaired emotional memory. The question arises whether this emotional memory impairment has ramifications for the production of emotional false memories. In the present study, we investigated the production of false and true memories for emotional events in a community sample (N = 120) of individuals varying in psychopathic traits (evaluated with the Psychopathic Personality Inventory-Revised [PPI-R] questionnaire). The fearless dominance (FD) component of psychopathy interacted with the emotional impact of to-be-remembered events in the production of false memories, showing fewer negative false memories with increasing levels of FD. At the subjective level, negative false memories were not perceived as vivid memory experiences in high FD individuals. Concerning true memories, higher scores in cold-heartedness were related to fewer true memories for neutral and negative (but not positive) events. These results show that individuals with high psychopathy traits - in particular, FD - do not have a general emotional memory impairment but they process negative material in a different way than individuals with low psychopathic traits and thus are less susceptible to producing false memories for negative events.

The power of negative and positive episodic memories

The power of episodic memories is that they bring a past moment into the present, providing opportunities for us to recall details of the experiences, reframe or update the memory, and use the retrieved information to guide our decisions. In these regards, negative and positive memories can be especially powerful: Life’s highs and lows are disproportionately represented in memory, and when they are retrieved, they often impact our current mood and thoughts and influence various forms of behavior. Research rooted in neuroscience and cognitive psychology has historically focused on memory for negative emotional content. Yet the study of autobiographical memories has highlighted the importance of positive emotional memories, and more recently, cognitive neuroscience methods have begun to clarify why positive memories may show powerful relations to mental wellbeing. Here, we review the models that have been proposed to explain why emotional memories are long-lasting (durable) and likely to be retrieved (accessible), describing how in overlapping—but distinctly separable—ways, positive and negative memories can be easier to retrieve, and more likely to influence behavior. We end by identifying potential implications of this literature for broader topics related to mental wellbeing, education, and workplace environments.

Attention-Emotion-Enhanced Convolutional LSTM for Sentiment Analysis

Long short-term memory (LSTM) neural networks and attention mechanism have been widely used in sentiment representation learning and detection of texts. However, most of the existing deep learning models for text sentiment analysis ignore emotion's modulation effect on sentiment feature extraction, and the attention mechanisms of these deep neural network architectures are based on word- or sentence-level abstractions. Ignoring higher level abstractions may pose a negative effect on learning text sentiment features and further degrade sentiment classification performance. To address this issue, in this article, a novel model named AEC-LSTM is proposed for text sentiment detection, which aims to improve the LSTM network by integrating emotional intelligence (EI) and attention mechanism. Specifically, an emotion-enhanced LSTM, named ELSTM, is first devised by utilizing EI to improve the feature learning ability of LSTM networks, which accomplishes its emotion modulation of learning system via the proposed emotion modulator and emotion estimator. In order to better capture various structure patterns in text sequence, ELSTM is further integrated with other operations, including convolution, pooling, and concatenation. Then, topic-level attention mechanism is proposed to adaptively adjust the weight of text hidden representation. With the introduction of EI and attention mechanism, sentiment representation and classification can be more effectively achieved by utilizing sentiment semantic information hidden in text topic and context. Experiments on real-world data sets show that our approach can improve sentiment classification performance effectively and outperform state-of-the-art deep learning-based methods significantly.

The route to recall a dream: theoretical considerations and methodological implications

The goal of this paper is to shed new light on the relation between dream recall and dream experiences by providing a thorough analysis of the process that leads to dream reports. Three crucial steps of this process will be distinguished: dream production (the generation of a conscious experience during sleep), dream encoding (storing a trace of this experience in memory) and dream retrieval (accessing the memory trace upon awakening). The first part of the paper will assess how major theories think about the relationship between dream reports and these distinct steps. The second part will systematise how trait and state factors affecting dream recall-given different theoretical assumptions-might interact with dream production, encoding and retrieval. Understanding how the distinct steps of dream recall can be modulated by different factors is crucial for getting a better grip on how to acquire information about these steps empirically and for drawing methodological conclusions with regard to the tools dream research relies on to collect subjective data about dream experiences. The third part of the paper will analyse how laboratory reports, logs and retrospective scales interact with the different factors that affect the distinct steps leading to dream reports and will argue that prospective methods provide more direct access to data regarding dream production and encoding than retrospective methods, which-due to their inability to provide systematic control over the factors affecting the retrieval stage-screen-off the variability in the production and the encoding of dreams.

Cueing emotional memories during slow wave sleep modulates next-day activity in the orbitofrontal cortex and the amygdala

Emotional memories are preferentially consolidated during sleep, through the process of memory reactivation. Targeted memory reactivation (TMR) has been shown to boost memory consolidation during sleep, but its neural correlates remain unclear, particularly for emotional memories. Here, we aimed to examine how TMR of emotional material during slow wave sleep (SWS) impacts upon neural processing during a subsequent arousal rating task. Participants were trained on a spatial memory task including negative and neutral pictures paired with semantically matching sounds. The picture-sound pairs were rated for emotional arousal before and after the spatial memory task. Then, half of the sounds from each emotional category (negative and neutral) were cued during SWS. The next day, participants were retested on both the arousal rating and the spatial memory task inside an MRI scanner, followed by another retest session a week later. Memory consolidation and arousal processing did not differ between cued and non-cued items of either emotional category. We found increased responses to emotional stimuli in the amygdala and orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), and a cueing versus emotion interaction in the OFC, whereby cueing neutral stimuli led to an increase in OFC activity, while cueing negative stimuli led to decreased OFC activation. Interestingly, the effect of cueing on amygdala activation was modulated by time spent in REM sleep. We conclude that SWS TMR impacts OFC activity, while REM sleep plays a role in mediating the effect of such cueing on amygdala.

Effects of acute exercise on emotional memory

Research has demonstrated beneficial effects of acute exercise on memory for neutral materials, such as word lists of neutral valence/low arousal. However, the impacts of exercise on emotional memory is less understood. Across three laboratory experiments in college students, we tested if acute exercise could enhance both neutral and emotional memory performance, anticipating a greater effect for emotional memory. We examined effects of exercise at varying intensities (Experiment 1: high-intensity; Experiment 2: low- and high-intensity; Experiment 3: moderate-intensity), of diverse modalities (Experiment 1: treadmill jogging; Experiment 2: cycling; Experiment 3: open-skill (racquetball) and closed-skill (treadmill jogging) exercise), and on emotional memory performance assessed at increasing levels of hippocampal dependency (Experiment 1: Y/N recognition task; Experiment 2: paired-associative recognition task; Experiment 3: cued-recall task). We found that, in all experiments, acute exercise did not significantly influence emotional or neutral memory performance relative to sedentary control conditions. However, we observed several noteworthy outcomes indicating that acute exercise may be linked to improvements in memory confidence and accuracy for central aspects of emotional memory stimuli, and that select exercise modalities (e.g. treadmill exercise) may also be associated with increased frequency of memory intrusions.

Experiential avoidance, uncompassionate self-responding, and peritraumatic depersonalization/derealization: A novel mediation model for war-related PTSD symptomatology

OBJECTIVE

To explore a novel model for war-related posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptomatology including emotion regulation processes, namely experiential avoidance (EA) and uncompassionate self-responding (USR), mediating the impact of childhood threat memories, combat exposure distress, combat and noncombat threats, and peritraumatic depersonalization/derealization (PDD) on PTSD symptomatology.

METHOD

A sample of 650 male Portuguese Overseas War veterans filled self-report instruments.

RESULTS

The model explained 59% of the variance of PTSD symptomatology. Both EA and USR mediated the effects of noncombat threats and PDD on PTSD. Additionally, EA mediated combat exposure distress and USR mediated childhood threat memories. Combat exposure distress, combat and noncombat threats, and PDD showed direct effects on PTSD symptomatology.

CONCLUSION

The findings help to better understand the relationship between predictive factors of war-related PTSD in clinical and research settings, providing novel insights on the effects of combat exposure distress, and the different effects of combat and noncombat-related threats on PTSD.

Split-Second Unlearning: Developing a Theory of Psychophysiological Dis-ease

Psychophysiological “stress” underpins many conditions including anxiety, depression, phobias, chronic fatigue syndrome and non-specific musculoskeletal pain such as fibromyalgia. In this article we develop an understanding of chronic psychophysiological stress from a psychological educational perspective, by drawing on supporting evidence that significant emotional events in early life (traumatic and benign) can influence health and well-being later in life. We suggest that traumatic events instigate psychophysiological “stress” responses and the formation of emotional memory images (EMIs) within very short time frames, i.e., “split-second learning.” Once formed these emotional memories are triggered in daily living “re-playing” psychophysiological stress responses, resulting in chronic psychophysiological “dis-ease.” We describe a novel therapeutic approach to scan clients for mannerisms signifying a subconscious “freeze-like” stress response that involves the client as a curious observer within their own experience, feeding back the non-verbal cues as they arrive in the moment. By breaking down the observable fragments of their split-second Pavlovian response to the trigger, clients can detach their EMI from the psychophysiology stress response, i.e., “split-second unlearning.” Our split-second unlearning model recognizes the EMI as a barrier to moving forward and needs to be unlearned before the client can become naturally adaptive again. We argue that this approach places the client at the center of the work without the need of getting bogged down in a life-long narrative.

Children's, Parents' and Healthcare Professionals' Preferences for Weight-Based Terminology in Health Care

The current study explored the preferences for and knowledge of weight-based terminology used in healthcare-related conversations, and descriptively compared the preferences of children, parents and healthcare professionals. In total, 86 children with overweight or obesity, 90 parents of children with overweight or obesity and 572 healthcare professionals indicated their preferences for 22 terms. When applicable, children and parents could indicate unfamiliarity with a term. Many children were unfamiliar with terms such as "adiposity^"adipositas"" (93%), "BMI" (60%) and "morbid obesity" (53%). Children, parents and healthcare professionals disliked "fat^adjective". All groups liked the terms "healthier weight" and "above a healthy weight". To conclude, children's, parents' and healthcare professionals' preferences for weight-based terminology are predominately congruent, except for "BMI". "BMI" is a popular term among healthcare professionals. It is recommended that healthcare professionals use terms that can be perceived as neutral or positive, such as "healthier weight", as this may contribute to a positive conversation which may lead to better compliance, and to avoid terms that can be perceived as judgmental, such as "fat^adjective", as this may worsen the dialogue and relationship between families and healthcare professionals, and increase weight-based stigma. Healthcare professionals should be aware that children may be unfamiliar with some terms.

Comparison of Autistic Individuals Who Engage in Self-Injurious Behavior, Aggression, and Both Behaviors

BACKGROUND

Two of the most challenging behaviors exhibited by individuals on the autism spectrum are self-injurious behavior (SIB) and aggression. The aim of this study was to identify co-occurring symptoms, behaviors, and medical comorbidities that may provide insight into understanding and treating these behaviors.

METHOD

A large-scale online survey was used to collect data on symptoms, behaviors, and medically related comorbidities commonly reported in individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Based on responses from 2327 participants, individuals with ASD were divided into four categories: individuals who engaged in SIB only, individuals who engaged in aggression only, individuals who engaged in both behaviors, and individuals who engaged in neither behavior.

RESULTS

There were several characteristics and comorbidities associated with those who engaged in SIB only and in aggression only, in addition to those who engaged in both behaviors.

CONCLUSION

The findings in this study provide evidence to support at least two underlying causes of these behaviors (insensitivity to pain and reactions to food) as well as implications for treating them. Furthermore, several behaviors often observed during early childhood may be considered early predictors of these challenging behaviors.

Employment After Breast Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment Among Women in the Sister and the Two Sister Studies

Purpose Women undergoing diagnosis and treatment for breast cancer may face challenges in employment. We investigated the impact of demographic, clinical, workplace, and psychosocial characteristics on loss of employment after a breast cancer diagnosis and treatment. We further describe changes in work status and work environment for cancer survivors who sustain employment. Methods We analyzed responses from a survey of breast cancer survivors from the Sister Study and the Two Sister Study cohorts who reported being employed at the time of their breast cancer diagnosis and who reported employment status (lost vs. sustained employment) at the time of survey administration. Multivariate logistic regression was used to identify the effects of lymphedema, neuropathy, problems with memory or attention, social support, health insurance, and sick leave on lost employment, adjusting for demographic characteristics, cancer stage, treatment, and general health. Results Of the 1675 respondents who reported being employed at the time of diagnosis, 83.5% reported being 'currently' employed at the time of the survey. Older age, peripheral neuropathy, lack of sick leave, late stage at diagnosis, a recurrence or a new cancer, problems with memory or attention, and poor general health were significantly associated with lost employment. Conclusions The long-term effects of breast cancer treatment and workplace provisions for leave and accommodation may have a substantial effect on women's ability to sustain employment. The findings from this study highlight challenges reported by cancer survivors that may inform clinical and occupational interventions to support survivors' return to work.

Transfer of negative valence in an episodic memory task

Emotion can color what we perceive and subsequently remember in myriad ways. Indeed, it is well established that emotion enhances some aspects of memory, while impairing others. For example, a number of recent episodic memory studies show that emotion-particularly negative emotion-weakens associative memory, including item-item associations. Other literature shows that emotion biases our later attitudes and preferences. That is, the coincident pairing of a negative stimulus with a neutral one can reduce one's preference for that neutral stimulus upon subsequent encounter-a 'transfer of valence' effect. In an effort to connect these two phenomena, here we ask if and under what circumstances they co-occur. Across multiple experiments, we show that negative emotion impairs associative memory for item-item pairings, in accordance with prior work. We also show a transfer of valence effect in this paradigm, such that items paired with negative versus neutral stimuli are subsequently rated as less pleasant. Our data further show that transfer of valence is contingent on episodic memory. These findings highlight the complexity and multifaceted nature of emotional effects on memory.

Emotional representations of space vary as a function of peoples' affect and interoceptive sensibility

Most research on people's representation of space has focused on spatial appraisal and navigation. But there is more to space besides navigation and assessment: people have different emotional experiences at different places, which create emotionally tinged representations of space. Little is known about the emotional representation of space and the factors that shape it. The purpose of this study was to develop a graphic methodology to study the emotional representation of space and some of the environmental features (non-natural vs. natural) and personal features (affective state and interoceptive sensibility) that modulate it. We gave participants blank maps of the region where they lived and asked them to apply shade where they had happy/sad memories, and where they wanted to go after Covid-19 lockdown. Participants also completed self-reports on affective state and interoceptive sensibility. By adapting methods for analyzing neuroimaging data, we examined shaded pixels to quantify where and how strong emotions are represented in space. The results revealed that happy memories were consistently associated with similar spatial locations. Yet, this mapping response varied as a function of participants' affective state and interoceptive sensibility. Certain regions were associated with happier memories in participants whose affective state was more positive and interoceptive sensibility was higher. The maps of happy memories, desired locations to visit after lockdown, and regions where participants recalled happier memories as a function of positive affect and interoceptive sensibility overlayed significantly with natural environments. These results suggest that people's emotional representations of their environment are shaped by the naturalness of places, and by their affective state and interoceptive sensibility.

Changing memories by interference: the effect of emotional dimensions in reconsolidation of episodic memories

Episodes with an emotional component preoccupy memory formation and this advantage facilitates their preservation and mitigates the impact of interfering episodes. The present study examined the relation of the emotional dimensions of original and interfering episodes to the memory outcome, using a reconsolidation paradigm. In a between-subjects design, 102 healthy young adults were presented with an emotional or neutral image and learned either an emotional or neutral story, respectively (day 1). On day 2, experimental groups were presented with an image of the opposite emotionality, reactivated the original story, and learned a story of the opposite emotionality. On day 3, experimental and control groups were tested for their memory on target and filler clues of the original story and rated both stories for arousal and valence. Overall, there was evidence of interference on the long-term retention of target clues only for the neutral story (i.e. when the interfering story was emotional), and of filler clues for both types of stories. Moreover, individual target clue retention rates correlated with the arousal ratings for both the original neutral story and the interfering emotional story, while they were not related to arousal ratings for the original emotional story or the interfering neutral one.

Remember as we empathize. Do brain mechanisms engaged in autobiographical memory retrieval causally affect empathy awareness? A combined TMS and EEG registered report

Social interactions are partly driven by our ability to empathize-the capacity to share and understand others' inner states. While a growing body of evidence suggests a link between past experiences and empathy, to what degree empathy is dependent on our own previous experiences (autobiographical memories, AMs) is still unclear. Whereas neuroimaging studies have shown wide overlapping brain networks underpinning AM and empathic processes, studies on clinical populations with memory loss have not always shown empathy is impaired. The current transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and electroencephalography study will seek to shed light on this neuropsychological puzzle by testing whether self-perceived empathy is causally linked to AM retrieval. Cortical activity, together with self-rating of empathy, will be recorded for scenarios that echo personal experiences while a brain region critical for AM retrieval will be transiently inhibited using TMS before task performance.

Highly superior autobiographical memory in aging: A single case study

Whilst countless studies have shown that aging is associated with cognitive decline in the general population, near to nothing is known about this association in elderly individuals naturally exhibiting enhanced memory capabilities. The identification of a 75 years old individual (GC) with highly superior autobiographical memory (HSAM), and his willingness to volunteer to our study over a period of five years, allowed us to investigate this issue in a single case study. At the age of 75 years, GC was screened for HSAM with the Public Events Quiz and the Random Dates Quiz, with a positive outcome. GC's memory performance was extraordinarily higher than normal-memory control subjects (>3 standard deviations), and comparable to a group of younger HSAM individuals (mean age of 32.5 years; Santangelo et al., 2018). GC underwent general neuropsychological (Mini-Mental State Examination), personality (Personality Assessment Inventory), and brain morphological (brain volumes and lesions) assessments, showing no deviation from normal ranges. To gain insight into the brain mechanisms underlying his memory performance, GC underwent functional brain imaging during the retrieval of memories associated with random dates. The latter were also rated in terms of reliving quality and emotional valence. Similar to younger HSAM individuals, GC's access to past memories recruited a wide network of prefrontal and temporo-parietal regions, especially during the recollection of memories associated with a lower reliving rating, suggesting a compensatory mechanism in HSAM. Increased activity in the insula was instead associated with emotionally-positive memories. Five years later, GC was tested again for HSAM and showed no sign of memory decline, whereby his memory performance was indistinguishable from the tests he performed five years earlier. GC's case suggests that highly superior memory performance can manifest without apparent decline in physiological aging. Implications of the current findings for the extant models of autobiographical memory are discussed.

The influence of emotional narrative content on the self-reference effect in memory

This study investigated how emotional language usage impacts self-referential effects in memory in healthy older adults and individuals with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI). To heighten self-focus, 37 healthy older adults and 22 aMCI participants narrated autobiographical memories and then encoded words using a self-referencing or a semantic strategy. We were interested in how narrating autobiographical memories impacted subsequent memory. We probed narrative language usage with the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count text analysis program, testing the degree to which language from the narrated autobiographical memories contain emotional (positive and negative) words that predicted the self-reference effect across groups. Results indicated that higher levels of positive emotional language were related to larger self-reference effects in memory. In conclusion, narrating autobiographical memories using emotional language influenced the effectiveness of self-referencing as a memory strategy for both healthy older adults and aMCI participants.

Efecto De La Personalidad Sobre El Recobro De Actos Violentos En Testigos

En el campo de investigación en psicología del testimonio se ha estudiado el efecto de múltiples factores psicológicos sobre la cantidad de detalles, la reproducción de conversaciones y las falsas memorias en el recobro de eventos autobiográficos. El objetivo de esta investigación es identificar el efecto de la personalidad sobre el recobro de testigos presenciales de actos con violencia verbal y no verbal. Participaron 40 estudiantes de psicología divididos en cuatro grupos en términos de sus puntuaciones altas en los estilos de personalidad histriónica (Grupo 1), esquizoide (Grupo 2), obsesiva-compulsiva (Grupo 3), y un grupo control con puntuaciones promedio en dichos estilos (Grupo 4). Mediante una situación experimental se presentó a los participantes un video con contenido de violencia verbal o física; posteriormente se realizó una tarea de recobro libre y se evaluó la cantidad de detalles, la reproducción de conversaciones y las falsas memorias. Los resultados mostraron que los participantes del Grupo 1 evidenciaron recobros pobres en detalles, con deficiente precisión en la reproducción de conversaciones y ausencia de falsas memorias, mientras que los participantes de los grupos 2 y 3 recobraron la información con mayor cantidad de detalles y mayor precisión en la reproducción de conversaciones, aunque el Grupo 3 obtuvo la mayor cantidad de falsas memorias. Estos hallazgos son discutidos en términos de la relación entre la forma en que se recobra la información en los procesos de Memoria Autobiográfica en escenarios jurídicos, y que hay otros constructos asociados como la personalidad y la emoción que pueden influir en el testimonio. Palabras Clave: Psicología del testimonio, recobro, personalidad, memoria autobiográfica, testimonio, contenido violento.

Identification of psychological features and development of an assessment tool for event-related psychological distress after experiencing non-traumatic stressful events

Stressful events in daily life that are non-traumatic (e.g., family-, school-, work-, interpersonal-, and health-related problems) frequently cause various mood disturbances. For some people, being exposed to non-traumatic but stressful events could trigger the onset and relapse of mood disorders. Furthermore, non-traumatic stressful events also cause event-related psychological distress (ERPD), similar to that of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD; i.e., intense intrusive imagery or memory recall, avoidance, and hyperarousal) in the general population and individuals with mood disorders. However, previous ERPD studies only showed that people with ERPD display PTSD-like symptoms after non-traumatic experiences; they failed to get to the crux of the matter by only utilizing trauma- or PTSD-related assessment tools. We thus aimed to identify the psychological phenomena and features of ERPD after individuals experienced non-traumatic stressful events, and to develop and validate an appropriate ERPD assessment tool. First, we conducted a qualitative study to obtain the psychological features through interviews with 22 individuals (mean age = 41.50 years old, SD = 12.24) with major depressive disorder or bipolar disorder. Second, in the quantitative component, we implemented a web-based survey with 747 participants of the general population (mean age = 41.96 years old, SD = 12.64) by using ERPD-related questionnaires created based on the qualitative study; then, we examined the reliability and validity of the ERPD assessment tool. Results yielded that the psychological features of ERPD comprised four factors: feelings of revenge, rumination, self-denial, and mental paralysis. These were utilized in the developed 24-item measure of ERPD—a novel self-report assessment tool. For various professionals involved in mental healthcare, this tool can be used to clarify and assess psychological phenomena in people with ERPD.

The Influence of Affective State on Subjective-Report Measurements: Evidence From Experimental Manipulations of Mood

A substantial portion of the knowledge base of psychology is based on subjective reports with a risk of information bias. The objective of the present study was to elucidate one contextual source of variance and potential bias in subjective reports: the influence of affective state at the time of responding to questionnaires. Employees (N = 67, abstaining from stimulants and activities that may influence emotional and physiological state) were subjected to mood-induction procedures in the laboratory. Neutral, positive, and negative moods were induced by combinations of pictures from the international affective picture set (IAPS) and music. The subjects responded to questions on visual analog scales (VAS) in order to optimize sensitivity and attenuate short-term memory effects. Most subjects exhibited significant affective-state inductions with no change in arousal. The analyses took affective response to the manipulation into account. Only four of 20 questions were somewhat influenced by induced affective state: job overload, social support from co-workers, satisfaction with getting to develop personally, and an item measuring agreeableness. In general, responding to questions of work that were phrased for valence was little or insignificantly influenced by induced affective state.

Photobiomodulation prevents PTSD-like memory impairments in rats

A precise fear memory encoding a traumatic event enables an individual to avoid danger and identify safety. An impaired fear memory (contextual amnesia), however, puts the individual at risk of developing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) due to the inability to identify a safe context when encountering trauma-associated cues later in life. Although it is gaining attention that contextual amnesia is a critical etiologic factor for PTSD, there is no treatment currently available that can reverse contextual amnesia, and whether such treatment can prevent the development of PTSD is unknown. Here, we report that (I) a single dose of transcranial photobiomodulation (PBM) applied immediately after tone fear conditioning can reverse contextual amnesia. PBM treatment preserved an appropriately high level of contextual fear memory in rats revisiting the "dangerous" context, while control rats displayed memory impairment. (II) A single dose of PBM applied after memory recall can reduce contextual fear during both contextual and cued memory testing. (III) In a model of complex PTSD with repeated trauma, rats given early PBM interventions efficiently discriminated safety from danger during cued memory testing and, importantly, these rats did not develop PTSD-like symptoms and comorbidities. (IV) Finally, we report that fear extinction was facilitated when PBM was applied in the early intervention window of memory consolidation. Our results demonstrate that PBM treatment applied immediately after a traumatic event or its memory recall can protect contextual fear memory and prevent the development of PTSD-like psychopathological fear in rats.

Conformidade em Memória de Reconhecimento: Revisão Breve e Potenciais Direções de Pesquisa

Resumo Conformidade de memória é o fenômeno em que relatos de memória de uma pessoa são modificados após exposição aos relatos de outra pessoa. Estudos sobre conformidade de memória são importantes tanto no âmbito puro quanto aplicado, especialmente quando os estímulos são carregados emocionalmente. No entanto, estudos de conformidade de memória com estímulos emocionais ainda são escassos. Além disso, os poucos estudos sobre o tema apresentam resultados contraditórios. Nesta revisão, apresentamos um breve resumo de pesquisas sobre conformidade de memória em tarefas de reconhecimento e avaliamos o papel moderador da emocionalidade na conformidade. Sugerimos como possível direção de pesquisas futuras a avaliação de duas variáveis, intervalo de retenção e distintividade dos estímulos, que podem ser cruciais para elucidar as inconsistências empíricas.

Investigating the replicability and boundary conditions of the mnemonic advantage for disgust

Research has demonstrated that people remember emotional information better than neutral information. However, such research has almost exclusively defined emotion in terms of valence and arousal. Discrete emotions may affect memory above and beyond such dimensions, with recent research indicating that disgusting information is better remembered than frightening information. We initially sought to determine whether participants are sensitive to the effects of discrete emotions when predicting their future memory performance. Participants in Experiment 1 were more confident in their memory for emotional (both frightening and disgusting) images relative to neutral images, but confidence did not differ between frightening and disgusting images. However, because we did not replicate the mnemonic advantage of disgust, subsequent experiments were concerned with testing the replicability of this effect. Because metamemorial judgments sometimes eliminate memory effects, participants in Experiment 2 did not make such judgments. Even so, the effect did not replicate. The disgust advantage was ultimately replicated in Experiment 3, where participants completed a secondary task at encoding. The disgust advantage is replicable but appears less robust than previously recognised. A single-paper meta-analysis indicated that the effect is more likely under divided attention, perhaps because the mechanisms which mediate disgust-memory are relatively automatic.

Verbal emotional memory laterality effect on amygdalohippocampectomy for refractory epilepsy

OBJECTIVES

To study the brain lateralization of the verbal emotional memory and the influence of the emotional valence, we investigated a sample composed of patients with medial temporal lobe refractory epilepsy (MTLE) treated with unilateral amygdalohippocampectomy compared to a control group.

MATERIALS & METHODS

A new task (Verbal Association) was designed and implemented to assess emotional memory performance. It was applied to 62 patients with MTLE of whom 31 have been subjected to right amygdalohippocampectomy and 31 to left amygdalohippocampectomy. These patients were compared with 31 participants with no cerebral pathology, as a control group.

RESULTS

(a) The control group obtained a higher number of recalled words than the rest of the groups, while the MTLE-right group obtained better results than the MTLE-left group. (b) In the case of positive emotional valence words, the MTLE-left group performed significantly worse than the rest of the groups; whereas for negative emotional words, the MTLE-left group presented the lowest average performance and the control group obtained a higher number of recalled words compared to MTLE-right group. In the case of neutral emotional words, no significant differences were found among the groups. (c) The MTLE-left group showed poorer performance on positive and negative words than neutral; the control group demonstrated lower average performance on positive and neutral words compared to negative; the MTLE-right group did not show any significant differences on the recall of different emotional valences.

CONCLUSIONS

Patients with MTLE show a deficit in the verbal recall which is exacerbated for information with an affective component. This deficit is more prominent in the case of patients with left unilateral resection (MTLE-left group) since they lose the benefits of the emotional information for the recall.

Different effects of feedback-induced emotion and material-induced emotion on memory

The function of emotion in enhancing memory has been proven by a large number of studies. However, previous studies mainly used emotional materials to induce emotions, and far fewer studies have examined how neutral stimuli and emotional event connections affect memory. In Experiment 1, the feedback from the results was used as an emotional event to explore the impact of connected emotions on memory. In Experiment 2, emotional materials were used to induce emotions, and the effects on memory in the two studies were compared. The emotions induced by the feedback resulted in positive emotions having the strongest effects on memory, while negative emotions had the weakest memory effect. However, when the emotional materials were used, there were different outcomes: negative emotional memories were the best, and neutral memories were the worst. Based on these results, we may conclude that different emotion-inducing methods have different effects on memory and that emotionally enhanced memory is not applicable to all emotion-inducing modes.

Highly emotional vicarious memories

Vicarious memories are memories that people have in reference to events that they have not directly experienced, rather heard second-hand. Little research has investigated vicarious memory; when it has, it has predominantly focused on vicarious trauma. The purpose of this study was to compare vicarious memories with personal memories. University students (N = 142) completed an in-person interview in which they recalled four memories: a highly positive personal memory, a highly negative personal memory, a highly positive vicarious memory and a highly negative vicarious memory. Personal and vicarious memory reports were compared and contrasted in terms of memory qualities, memory functions and event centrality. The results indicate that vicarious and personal memory reports share many phenomenological and functional properties. Although to a lesser degree than personal memories, vicarious memories do influence decision-making and problem-solving. Current models of episodic memory only include events that individuals have directly experienced. The current study adds to a growing body of literature which suggests that current models of episodic memory are too restrictive and should expand to include vicarious memory reports.

Memory for pictures of sexual assault: Sensitive maintenance of ambiguous stimuli

Individual differences in dispositional coping might influence how ambiguous situations involving interactions of men and women are interpreted and remembered. Specifically, we hypothesized that women with a sensitive coping style actively maintain ambiguously threatening stimuli in their memory, showing so-called sensitive maintenance. As a prerequisite to investigate this hypothesis, two surveys (Studies 1 and 2; N = 151 and N = 252) were conducted to answer the questions whether fear of sexual assault is of relevance for young women in Germany and whether ambiguous (rather than only unambiguously threatening) situations are experienced to a significant extent. After confirming this for our target population, our main hypothesis was tested in Study 3 (N = 192) by combining tasks assessing the appraisal and the forgetting of nonthreatening, threatening, and ambiguous pictures showing interactions of men and women, and by varying the cognitive load during the retention interval. Whereas fear of rape predicted the appraisal of pictures, coping dispositions predicted forgetting of ambiguously and unambiguously threatening pictures in the hypothesized way. Results are discussed from the perspective of adaptivity and functionality of memory.

Emojis influence autobiographical memory retrieval from reading words: An fMRI-based study

Advances in computer and communications technology have deeply affected the way we communicate. Social media have emerged as a major means of human communication. However, a major limitation in such media is the lack of non-verbal stimuli, which sometimes hinders the understanding of the message, and in particular the associated emotional content. In an effort to compensate for this, people started to use emoticons, which are combinations of keyboard characters that resemble facial expressions, and more recently their evolution: emojis, namely, small colorful images that resemble faces, actions and daily life objects. This paper presents evidence of the effect of emojis on memory retrieval through a functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) study. A total number of fifteen healthy volunteers were recruited for the experiment, during which successive stimuli were presented, containing words with intense emotional content combined with emojis, either with congruent or incongruent emotional content. Volunteers were asked to recall a memory related to the stimulus. The study of the reaction times showed that emotional incongruity among word+emoji combinations led to longer reaction times in memory retrieval compared to congruent combinations. General Linear Model (GLM) and Blind Source Separation (BSS) methods have been tested in assessing the influence of the emojis on the process of memory retrieval. The analysis of the fMRI data showed that emotional incongruity among word+emoji combinations activated the Broca's area (BA44 and BA45) in both hemispheres, the Supplementary Motor Area (SMA) and the inferior prefrontal cortex (BA47), compared to congruent combinations. Furthermore, compared to pseudowords, word+emoji combinations activated the left Broca's area (BA44 and BA45), the amygdala, the right temporal pole (BA48) and several frontal regions including the SMA and the inferior prefrontal cortex.

Methodische Anmerkungen und Anwendungsbereiche der Furchtkonditionierung in verschiedenen psychologischen Disziplinen

Zusammenfassung. Die Furchtkonditionierung stellt ein bedeutsames Paradigma zur Untersuchung von emotionalen Lern- und Gedächtnisprozessen dar. Nach einer ungefähr hundertjährigen Geschichte wird deutlich, dass die Furchtkonditionierung nicht nur einen wichtigen Beitrag zur speziesübergreifenden Grundlagenforschung liefert, sondern auch unterschiedliche Anwendungsfelder zu neuen Erkenntnissen inspirieren kann. In diesem Übersichtartikel soll das grundlegende Paradigma mit verschiedenen methodischen Überlegungen zur experimentellen Durchführung vorgestellt werden. Im Anschluss werden ausgewählte Anwendungsbereiche der Furchtkonditionierung innerhalb der psychologischen Disziplinen dargestellt: die Allgemeine Psychologie wird bezüglich allgemeingültiger Gesetzmäßigkeiten von Lern- und Gedächtnisprozessen angesprochen, die Differentielle Psychologie wegen bedeutsamer interindividueller Unterschiede, die Biologische Psychologie und Neuropsychologie in Bezug auf physiologische und anatomische Grundlagen der Furchtkonditionierung, die Sozialpsychologie im Zuge der Einstellungsforschung, die Entwicklungspsychologie aufgrund altersspezifischer Aspekte sowie die Klinische Psychologie und Psychotherapie im Hinblick auf die Pathogenese von Angsterkrankungen und der Expositionstherapie. Insgesamt betrachtet hat die Furchtkonditionierung das Potenzial nicht nur unterschiedliche Disziplinen der Psychologie in synergistischer Weise zusammenzubringen, sondern auch die verschiedenen inhaltlichen Schwerpunkte zu unterstreichen.

Comparison of systemic lupus erythematosus patients and healthy individuals in terms of autobiographical memory, mood, and cognitive emotion regulation

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic autoimmune disease of unknown cause. It affects different organs in the body. Neuropsychiatric manifestations are among the adverse effects of this disease. Considering the importance of neuropsychiatric manifestations, especially memory dysfunction and mood disorders, early neuropsychological evaluation and serious rehabilitation programs are needed. The present study aimed to compare SLE patients and healthy individuals in terms of autobiographical memory, mood, and cognitive emotion regulation. A sample of 30 SLE patients and 30 healthy individuals was selected by the convenience sampling method. The sample was evaluated by tests such as the Autobiographical Memory Test, the Beck Depression Inventory-second edition, and the Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire. The data were analyzed by the univariate analysis of variance, multivariate analysis of variance, and the Mann-Whitney U tests. The results of the study revealed a significant difference (p < .01) between SLE patients and healthy individuals in terms of autobiographical memory functioning in retrieving past memories and delay in retrieving memories. A significant difference (p < .001) was also found between SLE patients and healthy individuals in terms of mood. However, no significant difference was observed in terms of cognitive emotion regulation. Based on the results of this study, SLE patients' memory, especially autobiographical memory, and their mood are adversely affected by the disease-related neurological damage.

What Are We Missing? How Language Impacts Trauma Narratives

The potential for the development of psychopathology in aolescent refugees and asylees is high due to the trauma inherent in their experience. Yet, psychopathology rooted in trauma has proven amenable to treatment. Nonetheless, as most clinicians are monolingual, the language difference between clinician and client may be a barrier of desensitization and processing typically characteristic of trauma therapy. Thus, this study aimed to describe qualitative differences in speech production among native and non-native narratives using Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC) processing software (Pennebaker et al. 2015) to understand if the current best practice will function similarly in these populations. We compared 10 adolescent immigrants (50% male) who narrated events that provoked their migration to the U.S. in their second language (L2; i.e., English) to 10 age- and gender-matched adolescents narrating in their first language (L1; i.e., Spanish). Results revealed L1 narratives were significantly higher in their use of/talk about anger, cognitive processes, discrepancy, tentativeness, perceptual processes, ingestion, relativity, time, work, and home. L2 narratives were higher in their use of/talk about positive emotions, death, causation, health, motion, space, and fillers. Findings have implications for the efficacy of treatments using discourse to ameliorate symptoms related to trauma in non-native languages.

Spatiotemporal dynamics of working memory under the influence of emotions based on EEG

OBJECTIVE

Previous studies have reported that working memory (WM) may be affected by emotions and that the effect may exist in different stages of WM. However, at present it remains controversial whether emotions inhibit or facilitate WM, and how the mechanism of dynamic information transmission in the brain during WM is affected by emotions.

APPROACH

In this study, we used a video database to induce three emotions (negative, neutral, and positive) and adopted a change detection paradigm based on electroencephalography. Event-related potential (ERP) analysis, event-related spectral perturbation analysis, source location analysis based on the dipole localization method and the distributed source localization method, and effective connectivity analysis were performed.

MAIN RESULTS

Both behavioral and ERP results suggest that positive emotions have no significant effect on WM capacity, while negative emotions could facilitate WM capacity. Furthermore, the effective connectivity results based on two source location methods suggest that the long-range connectivity between the frontal and posterior areas can reflect the influence of positive and negative emotions on the WM network, in which the connectivity under the positive emotion condition occurs in the earlier period of WM maintenance, while the connectivity under the negative emotion condition occurs in the later period of WM maintenance.

SIGNIFICANCE

The consistency of the behavioral, ERP, and effective connectivity results suggests that under the negative emotion condition, the top-down attention modulation between the frontoparietal area and posterior area could promote the most relevant information storage during WM maintenance.

Enhanced mnemonic discrimination for emotional memories: the role of arousal in interference resolution

In the present study we investigated the long-standing question whether and why emotionally arousing memories are more distinct as compared to neutral experiences. We assumed that memory benefits from the distinctiveness of emotional information, and that emotions affect encoding by reducing interference among overlapping memory representations. Since pattern separation is the process which minimizes interference between memory representations with similar features, we examined the behavioral manifestation of putative neural mechanisms enabling pattern separation (i.e. mnemonic discrimination) for emotionally arousing materials using the Mnemonic Similarity Task with negative, positive, and neutral images as stimuli. Immediately after incidental encoding, subjects were presented with stimuli they had seen at encoding and also with new items. Crucially, participants were also presented with lure images that were visually similar to ones they had seen before. Response options were old, new, and similar. Our results showed that individuals were better in discriminating between similar, emotionally arousing memories, when compared to the neutral stimuli. Moreover, this so-called lure discrimination performance was better for the negative images, than it was for the positive stimuli. Finally, we showed that the high arousing negative stimuli were better separated than the low arousing negative stimuli, and a similar pattern of results was found for the positive items. Altogether, these findings suggest that lure discrimination is modulated by arousal and not by valence. We argue that noradrenergic activity might facilitate interference resolution among memory representations with similar features, and that superior pattern separation might play a key role in memory enhancement for emotional experiences.