Effects of threatening pictures on encoding behavior of subsequent stimuli.

Abstract: Research regarding episodic memory and emotion shows that emotion has a modulatory effect on memory. The aim of the present study is to investigate if exposure to emotionally loaded images could potentially change the way future neutral images are encoded, and if this exposure also modulates the memory experience of these images. In addition to this, data resulting from questionnaires regarding participants anxiety levels are also recorded and incorporated in follow -up analysis which examines the potential relationship between this exposure and individual’s anxiety levels. To investigate the relationship between prior emotional experiences and memory encoding, the present study examines how a sequence of neutral and emotionally loaded images are encoded and how these images are subsequently recalled from memory. To capture the memory encoding process, eye-tracking is used to monitor participants' gaze behavior when they inspect and encode different images. Results of the present study offer novel insights into the relationship between emotion and memory and show that (a) memories of emotionally charged and neutral images were experienced differently; (b) that participants looked back to locations where a previous image was presented during encoding and that such gaze behavior had an effect on the subsequent memory experience; (c) a relationship between higher levels of anxiety and the tendency to look back at positions where emotionally charged stimuli were encoded.