Engrams and causal specificity
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21592001 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Jonathan Najenson (0000-0002-1197-4842, Ruhr University Bochum, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 39 |
| Issue | 5 |
| Pages | 2181-2207 |
| Publication date | 2026-07-04 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Philosophical Psychology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0951-5089 • E-ISSN: 1465-394X |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/09515089.2025.2475173 |
| OpenAlex | W4408408144 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 62 |
The identification of memory engrams remains a methodological obstacle in neuroscience if they are to play the explanatory role ascribed to them by engram theory. I tackle the problem of specificity, namely the extent to which engrams can be identified, tracked, and distinguished from other engram and non-engram vehicles. I propose that adopting causal specificity from the interventionist framework of causation allows us to describe how engrams are specific to the memories and behaviors they generate. Drawing on recent work using information-theoretic measures to describe causal specificity, I illustrate how this approach can be used to model the reduction of uncertainty about retrieved memories following optogenetic interventions on engram cells
Cognitive psychology · Cognitive science · Engram · Epistemology · Epistemology, Ethics, and Metaphysics · Philosophy · Philosophy and History of Science · Philosophy and Theoretical Science · Psychology
Representation Reconsidered
Mental Time Travel
Causality
Causation in biology
A Mathematical Theory of Communication
Mental Time Travel? A Neurocognitive Model of Event Simulation
Predicting the Past from Minimal Traces
Memory as Triage
Singularism About Episodic Memory
Encoding without perceiving
Radicalizing simulationism
What have we learned about the engram
Engrams as mental files
Propping up the causal theory
Consumer-side reference through promiscuous memory traces
The problem of variable choice
Is memory for remembering? Recollection as a form of episodic hypothetical thinking
Episodic Memory and Unrestricted Learning
Stable Engrams and Neural Dynamics
Measuring Causal Specificity
Memory and Optogenetic Intervention
Phenomena and Objects of Research in the Cognitive and Behavioral Sciences
What Counts as a Memory? Definitions, Hypotheses, and “Kinding in Progress”
Signals That Make a Difference
The Nature of Memory Traces
Current Controversies in Philosophy of Memory
Causation with a Human Face
| Unique citing works | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1 |
| Citation span | 2026 - 2026 (1) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 1 |