Stronger memories forged by feelings

Scientists at the University of Queensland discovered that bad experiences enhance memory formation about places. This study is published in the Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience. Dr Oliver Baumann from the Queensland Brain Institute found that associating negative imagery with specific locations activates a part of the brain responsible for forming memory of places during navigation – the parahippocampal cortex. “This heightened recall occurs automatically, without people even being aware that the negative imagery is affecting their memories”, said Dr Baumann, who worked on the study in the QBI's Mattingley lab. It could serve as a cue for avoiding potential threats”, Dr Baumann said. "Our findings show that emotions can exert a powerful influence on spatial and navigational memory for places. In future we might be able to boost memory functions by triggering the positive side-effects of emotional arousal, while avoiding the need for negative experiences”. “The results showed that emotional arousal exerted a powerful influence on memory by enhancing parahippocampal activity”, Dr Baumann said.