Attending to Remember: Recent Advances in Methods and Theory

Abstract

The ability to learn from and remember experiences (episodic memory) depends on multiple neurocognitive systems. In this article, we highlight recent advances in methods and theory that are unveiling how mechanisms of attention impact episodic memory. We first provide a high-level overview of the construct and neural substrates underlying attention and related goal-state processes, along with their interactions with memory. We then highlight budding evidence supporting the rhythmic nature of memory and attention, raising key questions about the role that the oscillatory phase of attention rhythms plays on memory encoding and retrieval. Third, we consider how understanding age-related changes in memory and attention can be further advanced by assaying the precision of memory. Last, we illustrate how real-time closed-loop experiments provide opportunities to test causal relationships between attention and memory. Along the way, we raise open questions and future research directions about how attention-memory interactions enable learning and remembering in the mind and brain.