The hippocampus is critically involved in episodic memory, yet relatively little is known about how the development of this structure contributes to the development of episodic memory during middle to late childhood. Previous research has inconsistently reported associations between hippocampal volume and episodic memory performance during this period. We argue that this inconsistency may be due to assessing the hippocampus as a whole, and propose to examine associations separately for subregions along the longitudinal axis of the hippocampus. In the present study, we examined age-related differences in volumes of the hippocampal head, body, and tail, and collected episodic memory measures in children ages 8-11 years and young adults (N = 62). We found that adults had a smaller right hippocampal head, larger hippocampal body bilaterally, and smaller right hippocampal tail compared with children. In adults, but not in children, better episodic memory performance was associated with smaller right hippocampal head and larger hippocampal body. In children, but not in adults, better episodic memory was associated with larger left hippocampal tail. Overall, the results suggest that protracted development of hippocampal subregions contribute to age-related differences in episodic memory.

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This research investigated whether episodic memory development can be explained by improvements in relational binding processes, involved in forming novel associations between events and the context in which they occurred. Memory for item-space, item-time, and item-item relations was assessed in an ethnically diverse sample of 151 children aged 7 to 11 years and 28 young adults. Item-space memory reached adult performance by 9½ years, whereas item-time and item-item memory improved into adulthood. In path analysis, item-space, but not item-time best explained item-item memory. Across age groups, relational binding related to source memory and performance on standardized memory assessments. In conclusion, relational binding development depends on relation type, but relational binding overall supports episodic memory development.

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