Memory of Fictional Information: A Theoretical Framework

Much of the information people encounter in everyday life is not factual; it originates from fictional sources, such as movies, novels, and video games, and from direct experience such as pretense, role-playing, and everyday conversation. Despite the recent increase in research on fiction, there is no theoretical account of how memory of fictional information is related to other types of memory or of which mechanisms allow people to separate fact and fiction in memory. We present a theoretical framework that places memory of fiction in relation to other cognitive phenomena as a distinct construct and argue that it is an essential component for any general theory of human memory. We show how fictionality can be integrated in an existing memory model by extending Rubin's dimensional conceptual memory model. By this means, our model can account for explicit and implicit memory of fictional information of events, places, characters, and objects. Further, we propose a set of mechanisms involving various degrees of complexity and levels of conscious processing that mostly keep fact and fiction separated but also allow information from fiction to influence real-world attitudes and beliefs: content-based reasoning, source monitoring, and an associative link from the memory to the concept of fiction.

Taking the unreal seriously: enriching cognitive science with the notion of fictionality

Fictionality and fictional experiences are ubiquitous in people's everyday lives in the forms of movies, novels, video games, pretense and role playing, and digital technology use. Despite this ubiquity, though, the field of cognitive science has traditionally been dominated by a focus on the real world. Based on the limited understanding from previous research on questions regarding fictional information and the cognitive processes for distinguishing reality from fiction, we argue for the need for a comprehensive and systematic account that reflects on related phenomena, such as narrative comprehension or imagination embedded into general theories of cognition. This is important as incorporating cognitive processing of fictional events into memory theory reshapes the conceptual map of human memory. In this paper, we highlight future challenges for the cognitive studies of fictionality on conceptual, neurological, and computational levels. Taking on these challenges requires an interdisciplinary approach between fields like developmental psychology, philosophy, and the study of narrative comprehension. Our aim is to build on such interdisciplinarity and provide conclusions on the ways in which new theoretical frameworks of fiction cognition can aid understanding human behaviors in a wide range of aspects of people's daily lives, media consumption habits, and digital encounters. Our account also has the potential to inform technological innovations related to training intelligent digital systems to distinguish fact and fiction in the source material.

The Effect of Forward Testing as a Function of Test Occasions and Study Material

It has long been known that one of the most effective study techniques is to be tested on the to-be-remembered material, a phenomenon known as the testing effect. Recent research has also shown that testing of previous materials promotes the learning of new materials, a phenomenon known as the forward testing effect. In this paper, as of yet unexplored aspects of the forward testing effect related to face-name learning are examined; continuous and initial testing are compared to restudying, the effects of an initial test on subsequent learning, and whether an initial change of domain (change from one topic to another) regarding study material affects the robustness of the effect. An experiment (N = 94) was performed according to a 2 (Material: word pairs/face-name pairs in Block 1) × 3 (Test occasions: Blocks 1–4/Blocks 1 and 4/Block 4) complex between-groups design. The results showed that no difference between testing and repetition could be observed regarding the recall of faces and names. The restudy groups incorrectly recalled more names from previous lists in the last interim test compared to the tested groups, which supports the theory that interim tests reduce proactive interference. The results also suggest that the number of test occasions correlates with the number of incorrect recalls from previous lists. These results, in contrast to previous studies, highlight a potential uncertainty about the forward testing effect linked to the robustness of the phenomenon, the specificity in execution, and generalizability.

A social differential outcomes learning task: Performance, EEG, and questionnaire data

This article contains performance data, questionnaire ratings, and EEG data from a differential outcomes learning task from two experiments. In both experiments, the standard differential outcomes learning task was extended to involve a social dimension, in order to capture how people can learn from others by observation. In Experiment 1 (N = 20), using a within-subjects design, participants learned pairings of image stimuli in four conditions: 1) individual-differential outcomes, 2) individual-non-differential outcomes, 3) social-differential outcomes, and 4) social-non-differential outcomes. The social condition had a screen-captured video recording of the outcomes (but not the actions themselves) of another person performing the task. During the task, the performance of the participants was measured. After the task, participants rated their experience in a questionnaire. The procedure for Experiment 2 (N = 33) was similar to Experiment 1, but with a stronger social manipulation using a video of another person's face showing facial expressions reflecting the outcomes. In addition, EEG was measured while performing the task. For more insight, please see Vicarious value learning: Knowledge transfer through affective processing on a social differential outcomes task (Rittmo et al., 2020).

Vicarious Value Learning: Knowledge transfer through affective processing on a social differential outcomes task

The findings of differential outcomes training procedures in controlled stimulus-response learning settings have been explained through theorizing two processes of response control. These processes concern: i) a stimulus-response route, and, ii) an outcome expectancy route through which valuations of stimuli (typically auditory or visual) may be represented. Critically, under certain contingencies of learning, the interaction of these two processes enables a transfer of knowledge. Transfer is hypothesized to occur via implicit inference for response selection given novel stimulus-response pairings. In this article, we test this transfer of knowledge, previously only examined in individual settings, in novel social settings. We find that participants are able to achieve transfer of knowledge and suggest they achieve this through vicariously learning the differential valuations of stimuli made by the (confederate) 'other' involved in the task. We test this effect under two experimental conditions through manipulation of the information made available to participants observing the confederate other's choices. The results of EEG recordings are, additionally, evaluated and discussed in the context of social signalling and emotional and cognitive empathy. We also consider implications for clinical and technological social learning settings.

Minimalist Social-Affective Value for Use in Joint Action: A Neural-Computational Hypothesis

Joint Action is typically described as social interaction that requires coordination among two or more co-actors in order to achieve a common goal. In this article, we put forward a hypothesis for the existence of a neural-computational mechanism of affective valuation that may be critically exploited in Joint Action. Such a mechanism would serve to facilitate coordination between co-actors permitting a reduction of required information. Our hypothesized affective mechanism provides a value function based implementation of Associative Two-Process (ATP) theory that entails the classification of external stimuli according to outcome expectancies. This approach has been used to describe animal and human action that concerns differential outcome expectancies. Until now it has not been applied to social interaction. We describe our Affective ATP model as applied to social learning consistent with an “extended common currency” perspective in the social neuroscience literature. We contrast this to an alternative mechanism that provides an example implementation of the so-called social-specific value perspective. In brief, our Social-Affective ATP mechanism builds upon established formalisms for reinforcement learning (temporal difference learning models) nuanced to accommodate expectations (consistent with ATP theory) and extended to integrate non-social and social cues for use in Joint Action.

Bright light as a chronobiological countermeasure for shiftwork in space

Work-rest schedules during long duration space missions involve several factors which could disrupt sleep and circadian temporal organisation: (1) displacement of sleep due to two-shift operations; (2) planned or unplanned schedule changes due to operational requirements; (3) social and light zeitgebers different from those on earth; (4) changes in the gravitational exposure. Timed bright light treatment has the potential to accelerating adaptation to schedule changes. Four male subjects were exposed to two sessions of 11 d of simulated microgravity (6 degrees head down tilt bedrest) with 6-h extensions of the wake period on 2 days (12-h phase delay). In a blind crossover design, subjects were exposed to bright light (>3500 lux) for 5 h on each of the 2 shift days and the following day, at times either expected to accelerate the adjustment to the phase delay (experimental condition) or to have no phase shifting effect (control condition). Sleep was recorded polygraphically, the circadian system was monitored by recordings of heart rate and body temperature, and by collection of urine (electrolyte and hormone excretion). Only the rhythms of 6-hydroxymelatoninsulphate and potassium excretions showed significantly enhanced adjustment under the experimental condition. Different rhythms adapted to the 12-h delay at different rates, comparable to those observed after time zone shifts. Sleep was shorter in simulated weightlessness than in normal ambulatory age-matched subjects, consistent with the shorter sleep durations characteristic of space flight. These results confirm the disruptive effects of wake-rest schedule shifts on sleep and circadian rhythms. Contrary to our initial hypothesis, 5-h exposures to bright light finishing at the time of the circadian temperature minimum were not more effective at accelerating adjustment to a 12-h schedule delay than exposures coinciding with the temperature maximum. We conclude that, while bright light may accelerate adjustment to work-rest schedule delays, any such effect seems to be largely independent from the timing of the light exposure.