Emotion's effects on attention and memory : relevance to posttraumatic stress disorder

90 Pages·2010·4.256 MB·English

by  Steinmetz, Katherine Mickley, Kensinger, Elizabeth A.

PSYCHOLOGY OF EMOTIONS,
MOTIVATIONS AND ACTIONS

E ’ E
MOTION S FFECTS ON
A M
TTENTION AND EMORY

R P
ELEVANCE TO OSTTRAUMATIC
S D
TRESS ISORDER
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PSYCHOLOGY OF EMOTIONS,
MOTIVATIONS AND ACTIONS

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PSYCHOLOGY OF EMOTIONS,
MOTIVATIONS AND ACTIONS

E ’ E
MOTION S FFECTS ON
A M
TTENTION AND EMORY

R P S
ELEVANCE TO OSTTRAUMATIC TRESS
D
ISORDER

KATHERINE MICKLEY STEINMETZ
AND
ELIZABETH KENSINGER

Nova Science Publishers, Inc.
New York
Copyright © 2010 by Nova Science Publishers, Inc.

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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA

Steinmetz, Katherine Mickley.
Emotion's effects on attention and memory : relevance to posttraumatic
stress disorder / Katherine Mickley Steinmetz and Elizabeth Kensinger.
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN 978-1-61668-532-4 (eBook)
1. Attention. 2. Memory. 3. Post-traumatic stress disorder. I.
Kensinger, Elizabeth A. II. Title.
BF321.S64 2010
153.1'2--dc22
2010002980
ISBN: 978-1-61668-239-2

Published by Nova Science Publishers, Inc.  New York
CONTENTS

Preface vii
Acknowledgments ix
Chapter 1 Emotion's Modulation of Attention 1
Chapter 2 Attentional Processing of Emotion in People without
PTSD 5
Chapter 3 Effects of Emotion on Directed Attention 9
Chapter 4 Difficulty Disengaging from Emotional Information 13
Chapter 5 Attentional Processing in People with PTSD 17
Chapter 6 Preattentive Processes 19
Chapter 7 Directed Attention 23
Chapter 8 Emotion's Modulation of Memory 29
Chapter 9 Emotional Memory in People without PTSD 31
Chapter 10 Emotional Memory in People with PTSD 37
Chapter 11 Voluntary Memories 41
Chapter 12 Involuntary Memory 45
Chapter 13 A Memory Controversy in PTSD 49
Chapter 14 General Conclusions 55
References 57
Index 73

PREFACE

Out of all of the information that we experience, only a subset will
become part of our memories. Attentional processes, engaged during an
event’s unfolding, are essential for allowing us to transform an experience into
a memory, and emotion can critically modulate those attentional processes,
increasing the likelihood that an emotional experience becomes part of our
memory stores. This book reviews behavioral and neuroimaging evidence that
has revealed effects of emotion on memory and attention in individuals with
and without posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). First, we review how
emotion influences the attentional processes that allow individuals with and
without PTSD to transform experiences into a memory. Second, we focus on
differences in the way emotional items are remembered in people with and
without PTSD and how this may be linked to differences in attention at
encoding. Third, we discuss current controversies regarding the uniqueness of
traumatic memories in PTSD.