How working memory load influences emotional associative memory
Immediate and delayed effects
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21621472 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Sinem Söylemez (0000-0002-3785-9340, Manisa Celal Bayar University, corresponding author), Aslan Karaaslan (0000-0003-3325-4122, Izmir Kâtip Çelebi University) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 45 |
| Issue | 6 |
| Publication date | 2026-03-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Current Psychology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1046-1310 • E-ISSN: 1936-4733 |
| Publisher | Springer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1007/s12144-026-09175-6 |
| OpenAlex | W7132842520 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 72 |
Previous research has reported conflicting effects of negative emotion on memory: while emotion can enhance item memory (remembering individual items), it can impair associative memory (remembering connections between items). One proposed mechanism for this impairment involves working memory: negative emotion may interfere with working memory, reducing the ability to form associations (impairment hypothesis). Alternatively, emotional stimuli may recruit specialized cognitive processes that compete with working memory resources (reduction/reactivation hypothesis). The present study investigated whether the disruptive effect of negative emotion on associative memory stems from working memory interference or competition with other cognitive processes during maintenance phase following encoding. Participants encoded pairs of neutral and emotional scenes with neutral objects, followed by a low or high cognitive load task during the maintenance phase. Associative memory was tested either immediately or after a 24-hour delay. The results revealed a three-way interaction between emotion, cognitive load, and time interval. Specifically, high cognitive load enhanced delayed associative memory for emotional pairs, whereas neutral pairs benefited only in the immediate test. Accuracy on the math problems confirmed the effectiveness of the cognitive load manipulation, and reaction times reflected interaction effects between emotion and load. These findings suggest that cognitive load during the post-encoding working memory maintenance phase modulates the long-term retention of negative emotional associative memories
Associative property · Autobiographical memory · Cognition · Cognitive Load · Content-addressable memory · Working memory · Cognitive Abilities and Testing · Memory Processes and Influences · Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
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| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |