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Changes in the level of unitization moderate the impact of unitization on associative memory and its underlying
Zejun Liu1,2, Yajun Zhu3, Xiuping Song4
1School of psychology, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China. 2170401016@cnu.edu.cn.
Unitization enhances associative memory by increasing familiarity, but its effect on recollection depends on consistent unitization levels from encoding to retrieval. Changes in unitization alter memory performance and neural activity.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Psychology
Background:
- Unitization is thought to enhance associative memory by boosting familiarity.
- Previous research on unitization's effects on associative memory and recollection has yielded conflicting results.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how changes in unitization levels between encoding and retrieval influence associative memory and recollection.
- To clarify the mixed findings in the literature regarding unitization's impact on memory.
Main Methods:
- Participants encoded related (high unitization) and unrelated (low unitization) picture pairs.
- Retrieval involved distinguishing intact from rearranged pairs, with potential changes in unitization.
- Scalp electroencephalographic activity (EEG) was recorded.
Main Results:
- A familiarity-related FN400 old/new effect was observed for related pairs, supporting the unitization-familiarity link.
- The impact on associative memory and recollection (LPC old/new effect) depended on unitization consistency.
- Consistent unitization showed no significant difference between related and unrelated pairs, while changed unitization enhanced performance for related pairs.
Conclusions:
- Unitization's effect on associative memory is modulated by changes in its level from encoding to retrieval.
- Unitization differentially affects familiarity and recollection contributions to associative memory.
- The findings help resolve inconsistencies regarding unitization's role in associative memory.
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