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Does survival context enhance memory for source? A within-subjects comparison.
Mine Misirlisoy1, Hilal Tanyas1, Nart Bedin Atalay2
1a Department of Psychology , Middle East Technical University , Ankara , Turkey.
Memory (Hove, England)
|January 17, 2019
Summary
Survival processing enhances memory for both items and their source, particularly when the survival context is the source of memory. This adaptive memory effect supports evolutionary psychology principles.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Evolutionary Psychology
- Neuroscience
Background:
- Survival processing, an adaptive memory mechanism, enhances recall and recognition.
- Prior research shows mixed results for survival processing's impact on source memory.
- The current study investigates the survival advantage in source memory when the context itself is the source.
Purpose of the Study:
- To systematically investigate the survival advantage in source memory.
- To determine if survival processing enhances memory for the source of information.
- To explore proximate mechanisms underlying the survival processing effect.
Main Methods:
- Four experiments were conducted using recall and recognition tests.
- Participants processed words in survival and control contexts.
- Source memory was assessed by recalling the context associated with each word.
Main Results:
- A survival advantage for item memory was observed across all experiments.
- The survival advantage was not initially found for source memory in Experiment 1A.
- Subsequent experiments demonstrated a survival advantage for both item and source memory.
Conclusions:
- Survival processing enhances both item and source memory when the survival context is the source.
- Findings support the adaptive memory hypothesis and suggest underlying proximate mechanisms.
- The study clarifies the role of survival processing in memory for contextual information.
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