Memory for Emotional Content and Context: Insights from Event-Related Potential (ERP) Studies

A large number of studies has highlighted the modulatory role of emotion on memory. While studies of free recall have consistently revealed an emotion-induced memory enhancement, studies of recognition memory have produced mixed results in this respect. A series of ERP memory studies using either faces with emotional affects or emotional objects and scenes as stimulus materials will be presented. It will be shown how emotional valence and arousal modulate recollection and familiarity, the two subprocesses for recognition memory, as well as other cognitive processes, i.e., decision behavior. A second series of studies will focus on source memory for emotional events. These studies revealed that emotionally arousing events reduce source memory for some but not all features of a study context. A potential electrophysiological correlate for this emotional modulation of contextual memory will be discussed.