The influence of age and emotion in a memory task with proactive interference

Abstract

An important function of the memory system is its capacity to erase and recharge the memory storage from unnecessary contents. Moreover, emotional memories are known to be better encoded and usually to persist longer in the memory system than neutral information. It has also been suggested that the valence of the emotional memories plays a differential role when comparing different age groups. The goal of this study was to test in younger and older adults, first, whether the capacity to update memories differs between age groups and, second, whether the emotional valence of memories plays a role and interacts with the impact of age. To this aim a group of younger (18 to 26 years) and older (64 to 77 years) adults performed a memory task with distractors serving as proactive interferences. The results show that younger adults are better at discriminating proactive interferences and that the emotional valence interacts with this effect..