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Parahippocampal cortex activation during context reinstatement predicts item recollection
Rachel A Diana1, Andrew P Yonelinas, Charan Ranganath
1Department of Psychology, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.
Journal of Experimental Psychology. General
|August 14, 2013
Summary
Parahippocampal cortex (PHc) activity during cognitive context retrieval predicts later memory recall. This suggests the PHc plays a crucial role in binding events with their associated cognitive context for episodic memory.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Psychology
Background:
- Episodic memory involves binding events with contextual information.
- Cognitive context includes goal-directed thoughts during an event.
- The binding of items and context (BIC) theory implicates the parahippocampal cortex (PHc).
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of the PHc in processing cognitive context during episodic memory retrieval.
- To test the prediction that PHc activity correlates with item recollection during cognitive context reactivation.
Main Methods:
- Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to measure brain activation.
- A novel paradigm involved covert reinstatement of cognitive contexts before memory probes.
- Contexts were studied with multiple items to prevent spontaneous retrieval.
Main Results:
- Increased PHc activation during cognitive context reinstatement predicted subsequent item recollection when the context matched the encoding context.
- No such correlation was found when the reinstated context was unrelated to the test item.
Conclusions:
- PHc activation is correlated with the retrieval of cognitive context.
- These findings support the role of the PHc in processing cognitive context for episodic memory.
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