Abstract
Research on early cognitive markers of Alzheimer’s disease is primarily focused on episodic memory tests that involve deliberate retrieval. Our purpose was to provide clear evidence to support a novel Spontaneous Retrieval Deficit hypothesis, which predicts that people at pre-clinical stages of dementia, including those with amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment (aMCI), are particularly impaired on tasks based on spontaneous retrieval. We compared 27 aMCI individuals and 27 healthy controls on mind-wandering while performing a task during which there were exposed to either highly meaningful or unmeaningful pictures. The substantial reduction in mind-wandering among individuals with aMCI was found with exposure to highly meaningful stimuli, but not to unmeaningful pictures, and it was most pronounced for past-oriented thoughts, i.e., involuntary autobiographical memories. Those findings provide strong support for this novel hypothesis, and show that it is the spontaneous, but bottom-up and cue-driven processes, for which meaningful environmental stimuli are crucial, that are very promising early markers of the disease.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
