How fragile is memory? Examining reactivation and survival-related stimuli effects

The present studies have been conducted with the aim of investigating the fragility of memory. To this end, three lines of studies were conducted that explored the role of memory reactivation and survival-related stimuli on subsequent memory performance. Firstly, the reactivation of memories for emotional stimuli was investigated using a paradigm already validated in the literature (Hupbach et al., 2007; 2008; 2009) in which neutral objects were replaced with negative and neutral images. It was expected that memories for negative stimuli would be more resistant to change following reactivation, unlike memories for neutral stimuli, which were expected to show more intrusions. The results of the first set of experiments suggest that neither memory reactivation nor stimulus valence are factors that lead to memory updating within the framework of the paradigm used. The second strand of research investigated memory reactivation in a different paradigm, that of retrieval-induced forgetting, in order to understand whether it is possible to overcome forgetting under conditions of cognitive fatigue, replicating previous research (Tumen & Ikier, 2021), and what the relationship is with working memory. With regard to the research hypothesis, the three experiments yielded non-significant results, whereby the non-fatigued group showed the same amount of RIF effect compared to the experimental group. Also, no significant relationship with working memory was found. Finally, the third strand of research aimed to investigate memory performance in the presence of survival-related stimuli, following in the wake of the studies by Nairne et al. (2007; 2012). The four experiments taken together show that survival-related stimuli enhance memory performance in a variety of tasks. Taken together, these studies appear to suggest that memory stability persists in the face of memory destabilization, which can be interpreted in the context of its adaptive value.