Episodic memory provides a means by which we are able to reflect on the past, make decisions about the future, and form a learned identity. Even subtle changes to our memory can have a detrimental impact on our daily lives. Memory declines as we age, and clinically salient impairment is one of the defining symptoms of amnestic mild cognitive impairment and diagnosis of dementia due to Alzheimer’s disease. As a result, decades of research have been dedicated to unpacking the mechanisms by which the brain, specifically the hippocampus, supports the formation and retrieval of different forms of memory. However, recollection memory is typically tested using all-or-nothing measures of general success that fail to capture the quality and details (precision) of the memory recalled. Here, I present a series of experiments combing noninvasive neuroimaging techniques with behavioral paradigms that utilize novel analysis approaches, in order to characterize the precision of recollection. Results from these experiments demonstrate that recollection precision is critically dependent on the hippocampus, relies on a distributed cortical network, is a sensitive measure that selectively captures impairment due to age, and can be improved via noninvasive stimulation.

Creator

• Nilakantan, Aneesha S

DOI

• https://doi.org/10.21985/n2-cyhc-6n02

Subject

• Cognitive psychology
• Aging
• Neurosciences

Language

• en

Alternate Identifier

• etdadmin_upload_674620
• http://dissertations.umi.com/northwestern:14737

Keyword

• aging
• hippocampus
• transcranial magnetic stimulation
• precision
• recollection
• human memory

Date created

• 2018-01-01

Resource type

• Dissertation

Rights statement

• In Copyright