Feindel Brain and Mind Seminar Series - Memory Change: Aging to Anxiety

Associate Professor, McGill University

The Cognitive and Neural Mechanisms of Memory Change: From Aging to Anxiety

Abstract: It is well accepted that memory retrieval is a dynamic process, leading to variations in how individuals recall past experiences. Cognitive neuroscience models of memory suggest distinct hippocampal circuits are involved in representing memories either with broad, conceptual elements or with precise, perceptual details. In this talk, I will present a series of behavioral and neuroimaging studies that leverage these models to explore memory differences related to aging and mental health conditions, such as anxiety. These studies reveal that different populations—such as younger versus older adults and individuals with anxiety—tend to favor certain types of memory representation that are reflected in behaviour and in the brain. I will also present results showing how these representational biases ultimately can impact the way memory is used to guide decision making and future planning. I will finish by discussing implications for neurocognitive models of aging and therapeutic interventions for mental health.

Bio: Signy Sheldon is an Associate Professor and Tier II Canada Research Chair in Cognitive Neuroscience of Memory in the Department of Psychology at McGill University. Her research focuses on understanding the behavioural and brain basis of individual and age-related differences in complex memories. Her work also examines how these memory differences extend outside of remembering, to decision making and empathy, to provide new insights into the functions of our memory system.

Host or Publisher The Neuro