Work

Memory under pressure: The impact of acute stress across different memory tasks

Year: 2024

Type: article

Abstract: In the present study, we aimed to investigate how acute stress exerts its heterogeneous effects. Based on biophysical network models, we hypothesized that acute stress would improve occipital-mediated ultra-short-term and to a lesser degree affect occipital- and frontal-mediated short-term and working, and impairs hippocampal-mediated long-term memory processes and their respective behavioral measures. To test this, 111 healthy individuals (57 female) underwent both the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) and a control test. Immediately afterward, participants’ performance was measured in four memory tasks (Rapid Serial Visual Presentation, RSVP, Match-to-Sample, MTS, N-Back, NB and Free-Recall, FR tasks). TSST exposure seems to impair long-term memory (AC FR ; β = −1.50 ± 0.62; when free recall was tested approx. 80 minutes after initial encoding, immediately after the TSST), and working memory (AC NB ; β= −0.42 ± 0.20 %) but did not affect ultra-short-term (AC RSVP ; β = −0.03 ± 0.31 %) and short-term (AC MTS ; β=-0.18 ± 0.31 %) memory accuracies (ACs). Interestingly, TSST exposure increased the exploratory included measure of response times in MTS (RT MTS ; β =16.42 ± 7.18 msec) and impaired T1 detection in the RSVP (AC T1 ; β=-0.48 ± 0.22 %) tasks. Contrary to the hypothesis, TSST exposure did not have the hypothesized effects on the memory processes. Instead, TSST exposure appeared to affect secondary behavioral indicators of motivation or task instruction adherence. • The TSST effects on memory vary across different tasks. • Acute stress impairs long-term memory retrieval after a short retention period. • Working memory performance is considerably affected following acute stress exposure. • Acute stress affects motivation or task instruction adherence.

Source: Psychoneuroendocrinology

DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2024.107246

Authors: Selen Soylu, Robert Miller, Maximilian Pilhatsch, Tanja Endrass, Lisa Weckesser

Institutions: Technische Universität Dresden, Psychologische Hochschule Berlin, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus, Elblandklinikum Radebeul

Language: English

Topic: Stress Responses and Cortisol

Subfield: Behavioral Neuroscience

Field: Neuroscience

Domain: Life Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,890