Memory and state dependence 2

Question 1

what are some examples of contextual and external cues that can aid memory?

Answer 1

• spatial environment
• odours
• music

Question 2

how can mood aid memory retrieval (Bower et al., (1978))

Answer 2

• Mood: a temporary but relatively sustained and pervasive affective state, often contrasted in psychology and psychiatry with a more specific and short-term emotion (Colman, 2015)
• Bower and colleagues used hypnosis to induce either happy (H) or sad (S) moods in their participants.
• Participants learned 2 lists one following H induction and one following S induction.
• They were tested on both lists after either H or S induction.
• found that ps recalled more items when they were tested in the mood they learnt in
• table of results on OneNote

Question 3

state dependent or dissociated learning produced with pentobarbital, Overton (1964)

Answer 3

• Rats trained to escape from unavoidable shock in a T-maze
• Sodium pentobarbital produced ‘dissociated learning’ in rats
• Seen when performance of tasks learned in the drug state does not transfer to the non-drug state
• But learning can be reactivated if the drug is re-instated

Question 4

State dependent extinction in rats (Bouton et al., 1990)

Answer 4

• Context fear conditioning preparation (measured freezing)
• Chlordiazepoxide (a benzodiazepine) was administered during extinction learning, as it happens during treatment of anxiety
• Rats were conditioned and then experienced extinction (or not) drugged.
• Rats were tested both sober and with the drug (on separate days)
• graph on OneNote

Question 5

State-dependent due to intracerebral inactivation, Ramanathan et al., (2018)

Answer 5

• nucleus reuniens (RE) is a midline thalamic nucleus that interconnects the mPFC with the hippocampus
• RE was inactive in the rats
• rats were then trained in context A (target) and tested in context B (generalisation)
• rats performed better if trained in the same context that they trained in
• performance was impaired if the context was different

Question 6

what are some experiments using state-dependent memory in humans?

Answer 6

• Goodwin et al. (1969) - (non-alcoholic) subjects can’t remember, when sober, what happened when drunk. May remember when next drunk
• Eich et al. (1975) - marijuana produced state-dependent effect when no (external) cues to recall were available
• Hurst et al. (1969) - amphetamine ineffective (but paired associate task!)
• Bustamante et al. (1970) - amphetamine did result in state-dependency (free recall task, drawing geometric shapes)

Question 7

is state-dependency unreliable? Eich (1980)

Answer 7

• 88% studies showing evidence for state-dependent effects used free recall tasks
• 90% studies that did not show state dependency used cued recall or recognition tests (familiar?)
• Suggests internal state more important cue in the absence of ‘observable’ retrieval cues
• State-dependent effects consistent and reproducible only when contextual cues are not overshadowed by more explicit reminders
• see graphs and data on OneNote