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Related Experiment Videos

Dimensions of mood in mood-dependent memory

W R Balch1, D M Myers, C Papotto

  • 1Department of Psychology, Pennsylvania State University, Altoona 16601-3760, USA. wrb3@psu.edu

Journal of Experimental Psychology. Learning, Memory, and Cognition
|February 9, 1999
PubMed
Summary

Mood pleasantness significantly impacts memory recall, while arousal effects are conditional. This study clarifies mood-dependent memory (MDM) dimensions for better understanding memory retrieval.

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Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Neuroscience
  • Affective Science

Background:

  • Mood-dependent memory (MDM) is a phenomenon where recall is better when mood at retrieval matches mood at encoding.
  • Existing research often treats mood as a unitary construct, but emotions have multiple dimensions.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the distinct roles of mood pleasantness and arousal in mood-dependent memory (MDM).
  • To determine if pleasantness-dependent memory and arousal-dependent memory differ in consistency and magnitude.

Main Methods:

  • Participants generated words under specific mood music conditions and recalled them under altered mood conditions (music or verbal scenarios).
  • Mood manipulation involved changing either pleasantness, arousal, or both dimensions between word generation and recall phases.

Related Experiment Videos

  • A normative study and five experiments were conducted to systematically assess mood effects.

    • Main Results:

    • A decrease in memory occurred when only mood pleasantness changed between encoding and retrieval, regardless of explicit mood definition.
    • A change in arousal alone impaired memory only when the intended moods were explicitly defined.
    • Pleasantness-dependent memory was consistently observed, whereas arousal-dependent memory was conditional.

    Conclusions:

    • Mood pleasantness is a more robust predictor of mood-dependent memory than arousal.
    • Two-dimensional models of emotion provide a valuable framework for understanding memory processes.
    • Future research should consider the distinct contributions of mood dimensions to memory.