Beyond Context-Transfer Effects: Attenuated Familiarity During Virtual Reality-Based Retrieval Across Different...

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Neuroscience
• Human-Computer Interaction
• Memory Research

Background:

• Episodic memory encoding via Virtual Reality (VR) shows potential but its impact on retrieval processes is not fully understood.
• Prior studies suggest VR encoding enhances recollection while reducing familiarity, but context-congruence effects are unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate context-transfer effects on electrophysiological correlates of familiarity and recollection.
• To compare memory retrieval after VR-based versus PC-based encoding.

Main Methods:

• A source memory paradigm was used to assess object and context memory retrieval.
• Electrophysiological measures (frontal old/new effect, late positive component, late posterior negativity) were recorded.
• Encoding and retrieval modalities (VR vs. PC) were manipulated.

Main Results:

• Familiarity was attenuated for both PC-based and VR-based engrams (frontal old/new effect).
• Recollection showed a strong old/new effect in the late positive component under both encoding conditions.
• The late posterior negativity, associated with contextual detail search, was not observed in either condition.

Conclusions:

• Memory retrieval under VR conditions involves comparable contributions of familiarity and recollection, irrespective of encoding modality.
• Attenuated familiarity occurred across both VR and PC encoding modalities.
• Differences in VR and PC engrams depend on the interplay between encoding and retrieval modalities, extending beyond context-transfer effects.