Dynamic music-induced emotions shape the episodic structure of memory

Abstract

Human emotions ebb and flow across time. However, it is unclear how these fluctuations in emotion influence the organization of episodic memory. Here, we examine how emotion dynamics transform experiences into memorable events. Custom musical pieces and a dynamic emotion-tracking tool were developed to elicit and measure temporal fluctuations in emotions. We demonstrate novel evidence that memory is organized around emotional states. While listening to music, fluctuations in emotional valence regulate an underlying tension between ongoing memory integration versus separation. Whereas a large absolute or negative shift in valence helps segment memories into episodes, a positive emotional shift binds sequential representations together. Both discrete and dynamic shifts in music-evoked valence and arousal also enhance delayed item and temporal source memory for concurrent neutral items, signaling the beginning of new emotional events. Emotions thereby have the power to sculpt episodic memories, informing new therapeutic methods for assessing and restoring memory organization.

Emotional state dynamics impacts temporal memory

“…On the other hand, a temporal-order memory enhancing impact of negative emotional images contrasts with a recent finding indicating that music-evoked transitions to a more negative emotional state reduces temporal order accuracy for neutral objects (McClay et al, 2023). It is possible that the emotional modulation of temporal memory varies by whether temporal memory is measured for items that were themselves emotionally evocative versus extraneous to the emotioninducing stimuli (Mather, 2007;McClay et al, 2023); or, in other words, that negative emotion may differentially impact temporal memory for negative events compared to neutral items processed during negative states (McClay et al, 2023). Nonetheless, because our finding of higher temporal order memory accuracy for image pairs containing a recently-shown negative (vs. neutral) image was not a-priori predicted, it will be important to replicate it in the future.…”

“…Prior studies indicate that acute contextual shifts—such as going from one room to another—form so-called event boundaries (Zacks, 2020), which sculpt the organization of episodic memories, including memory for their temporal features (temporal memory) (Clewett et al, 2019; Shin & DuBrow, 2021). For example, subjective estimates of the time elapsed between a pair of items (henceforth referred to as ‘temporal distance’) are longer when items span an event boundary (even when objective time is held constant) (Ezzyat & Davachi, 2014; McClay et al, 2023; van de Ven et al, 2022; Y. C. Wang & Egner, 2022; Wen & Egner, 2022). Moreover, memory for the order in which items were originally encoded (henceforth referred to ‘temporal order memory’) is often impaired for items spanning an event boundary (Clewett & Davachi, 2021; DuBrow & Davachi, 2014, 2016; Gurguryan et al, 2021; Heusser et al, 2018; Hsieh et al, 2014; McClay et al, 2023; Pu et al, 2022; Sols et al, 2017; van de Ven et al, 2022; Y. C. Wang & Egner, 2022; Wen & Egner, 2022).…”

“…For example, subjective estimates of the time elapsed between a pair of items (henceforth referred to as ‘temporal distance’) are longer when items span an event boundary (even when objective time is held constant) (Ezzyat & Davachi, 2014; McClay et al, 2023; van de Ven et al, 2022; Y. C. Wang & Egner, 2022; Wen & Egner, 2022). Moreover, memory for the order in which items were originally encoded (henceforth referred to ‘temporal order memory’) is often impaired for items spanning an event boundary (Clewett & Davachi, 2021; DuBrow & Davachi, 2014, 2016; Gurguryan et al, 2021; Heusser et al, 2018; Hsieh et al, 2014; McClay et al, 2023; Pu et al, 2022; Sols et al, 2017; van de Ven et al, 2022; Y. C. Wang & Egner, 2022; Wen & Egner, 2022). These contextual shifts that form event boundaries are often accompanied by internal emotional-state changes, such as the shift to a joyful mood upon opening the lab door where a surprise birthday party awaits.…”

“…These contextual shifts that form event boundaries are often accompanied by internal emotional-state changes, such as the shift to a joyful mood upon opening the lab door where a surprise birthday party awaits. Nonetheless, despite the ubiquity of internal, emotional-state changes as we navigate shifting external contexts in our everyday lives, whether and how dynamic emotional states shape temporal memory—potentially impacting event boundaries produced by external contextual changes—has only recently been studied (Clewett & Davachi, 2021; Dev et al, 2022; McClay et al, 2023; Palombo et al, 2021).…”

“…On occasion, emotional valence shifts may improve temporal order accuracy while distorting temporal distance judgments. For instance, a recent study using music to induce emotion during neutral object encoding showed that shifts towards positively valenced states strengthened temporal order memory while shortening the remembered temporal distance between neutral object pairs (McClay et al, 2023). Findings from studies examining how emotional events impact retrospective temporal duration judgments align with this result, and suggest temporal dilation for negative compared to neutral events (M. Anderson et al, 2007; Bisson et al, 2008; Campbell & Bryant, 2007; Johnson & MacKay, 2019; Loftus et al, 1987; Stetson et al, 2007).…”