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Summary: The way an event is described (through feelings or sensory details) changes the way the brain stores and remembers it. In this study, participants listened to stories that emphasized conceptual details (thoughts and emotions) or perceptual details (sights and sounds).
Brain imaging showed that these two types of narratives activated different memory networks, which then predicted how well listeners remembered the central events of the story. The findings suggest that storytelling style can sculpt memory formation and can help adapt communication to different audiences, including age groups.
Key facts:
Dual memory systems: Conceptual storytelling activates emotional and interpretive brain networks, while perceptual storytelling engages sensory-focused areas. Predictive recall: The type of brain activity during listening predicted how well participants remembered story details later. Applied Perspective: Matching the communication style to the listener’s preferred memory system (conceptual or perceptual) can improve memory retention.
Source: SfN
Does the way a person learns about an event influence their subsequent memory?
In a new paper in the Journal of Neuroscience, Signy Sheldon and her colleagues at McGill University explored whether different storytelling strategies affect how the brain stores that experience as a memory and recalls it later.
The researchers created narratives with the same central events, but different elaborative details. These elaborations had two different focuses: (1) conceptual details, which describe a person’s feelings and interpretations while experiencing central events, and (2) perceptual details, such as a person’s concrete observations about central events.
Neuroimaging revealed that when the 35 study participants later recalled the stories, different memory networks in the brain were involved.
In particular, the different conceptual and perceptual brain networks that were active while listening to these different types of stories could predict how well participants would later remember the central elements of the story.
This study suggests that the way people learn about an event determines the way their brain remembers that experience. Sheldon explains what this might mean: “There is a lot of work in the field to show that individuals and groups prefer different memory systems.
“For example, older adults tend to use the conceptual memory system more than younger adults, who prefer to use the perceptual memory system when experiencing an event.
“This would mean that older adults can better process events described in conceptual detail than younger adults.
“If this is the case, it could help us tailor information to different age groups to improve memory. This is something we hope to test in the future.”
Key questions answered:
A: They explored how different narrative approaches (conceptual versus perceptual) shape memory formation and recall.
A: Listening to conceptually rich stories activated emotional and interpretive brain regions, while perceptually rich stories activated sensory networks.
A: It shows that the way we tell or listen to stories influences memory pathways in the brain, potentially allowing communication to adapt to age or learning preferences.
About this research news in memory and neuroscience
Author: SfN Media
Source: SfN
Contact: SfN Media – SfN
Image: Image is credited to Neuroscience News.
Original Research: Closed access.
“Cortical-hippocampal networks predict perceptually versus conceptually guided narrative memory” by Signy Sheldon et al. Neuroscience Magazine
Abstract
Hippocampal-cortical networks predict conceptually versus perceptually guided narrative memory
Current theories of event memory propose distinct connections between the hippocampus and neocortical regions, particularly those within the default mode network (DMN) subsystems, to support the processing of different types of content in memory.
It has been established that hippocampal connectivity supports the integration of this disparate content into unified event memories, suggesting that changing the way an event is described could change the underlying neural network of the hippocampus.
To address this knowledge gap, we developed event narratives that described the same core story (e.g., grocery shopping) with identical core story details described with additional descriptive details that were conceptually or perceptually related to the story.
Using fMRI, we established hippocampal connectivity patterns as a group of human participants (N = 35, either sex) encoded these narratives and then related these patterns to subsequent memory for narrative details.
Consistent with previous work, we found that conceptual narratives were associated with stronger connectivity of the anterior hippocampus with regions within the central and dorsomedial DMN subsystems, and a portion of this connectivity pattern predicted memory for the central story of the narrative.
Perceptual narratives were selectively associated with anterior hippocampal connectivity with parietal and lateral temporal regions and with regions outside the standard DMN, in relation to memory performance.
These results provide new insights into the functional organization of the hippocampus and DMN and how different neural components contribute differently to event memory.
