Effects of normal aging and Alzheimer's disease on emotional memory.

Abstract

Recall is typically better for emotional than for neutral stimuli. This enhancement is believed to rely on limbic regions. Memory is also better for neutral stimuli embedded in an emotional context. The neural substrate supporting this effect has not been thoroughly investigated but may include frontal lobe, as well as limbic circuits. Alzheimer's disease (AD) results in atrophy of limbic structures, whereas normal aging relatively spares limbic regions but affects prefrontal areas. The authors hypothesized that AD would reduce all enhancement effects, whereas aging would disproportionately affect enhancement based on emotional context. The results confirmed the authors' hypotheses: Young and older adults, but not AD patients, showed better memory for emotional versus neutral pictures and words. Older adults and AD patients showed no benefit from emotional context, whereas young adults remembered more items embedded in an emotional versus neutral context.

Verbal short-term memory reflects the organization of long-term memory: Further evidence from short-term memory for emotional words

“…On the other hand, contrary to this hypothesis, there was no age by emotional valence interaction for item errors. Some previous studies exploring the positivity bias in LTM experiments also did not observe a differential positivity effect in elderly participants relative to young participants (Comblain, D"Argembeau, Van der Linden, & Aldenhoff, 2004;Denburg, Buchanan, Tranel, & Adolphs, 2003;Kensinger et al, 2002). It should be noted that the (lack of) age-related differences that was observed in this study is difficult to interpret because the two groups differed in terms of positive affect (as assessed by PANAS questionnaire), the young group rating higher on the positive dimension than the elderly group .…”

Identity but not expression memory for unfamiliar faces is affected by ageing

“…Consistent with this proposition, Carstensen and Turk-Charles (1994) found, in a study of prose recall, that although older adults remembered less neutral content than young adults, both age groups recalled equivalent amounts of emotional material. More recently, Kensinger, Brierley, Medford, Growdon, and Corkin (2002) also found that young and older adults showed similar memory enhancement effects for emotional words or pictures, as compared to neutral items. In addition, Davidson and Glisky (2002) found that memory for contextual information associated with important emotional news (flashbulb memories) was not affected by ageing.…”

Cognitive Reserve and Emotional Stimuli in Older Individuals: Level of Education Moderates the Age-Related Positivity Effect

“…Although limbic regions tend to be spared by increasing age (Kensinger, Brierley, Medford, Growdon & Corkin, 2002), changes in amygdalar function and connectivity are observed (St. Jacques, Dolcos & Cabeza, 2009), suggesting age-related differences in emotional processing. The amygdala comprises a series of subcortical nuclei in the medial-temporal lobe and is thought to exert a modulatory role on the hippocampus, which, in Cognitive Reserve and Positivity Effect 5 turn, enhances episodic memory performance for emotional stimuli (LaBar & Cabeza, 2006).…”

“…Tests of executive functions (TMA & TMB) were administered as part of a neuropsychological test battery, at the end of which the test of emotional recall was also administered. The instructions for the emotional recall test were adapted from Kensinger et al (2002). At the beginning of the test, the experimenter informed the participants that they would be presented with a list of words, some of which would be negative, some would be positive and some would be neutral, and examples were given (e.g., "TABLE is neutral").…”