Abstract
The role of posterior parietal cortex (PPC) in various forms of memory is a current topic of interest in the broader field of cognitive neuroscience. This large cortical region has been linked with a wide range of mnemonic functions affecting each stage of memory processing: encoding, maintenance, and retrieval. Yet, the precise role of the PPC in memory remains mysterious and controversial. Progress in understanding PPC function will require researchers to incorporate findings in a convergent manner from multiple experimental techniques rather than emphasizing a particular type of data. To facilitate this process, here, we review findings from the human neuropsychological research and examine the consequences to memory following PPC damage. Recent patient-based research findings have investigated two typically disconnected fields: working memory (WM) and episodic memory. The findings from patient participants with unilateral and bilateral PPC lesions performing diverse experimental paradigms are summarized. These findings are then related to findings from other techniques including neurostimulation (TMS and tDCS) and the influential and more abundant functional neuroimaging literature. We then review the strengths and weaknesses of hypotheses proposed to account for PPC function in these forms of memory. Finally, we address what missing evidence is needed to clarify the role(s) of the PPC in memory.
Highlights
The role of posterior parietal cortex (PPC) in various forms of memory is a current topic of interest in the broader field of cognitive neuroscience
Regions of the PPC were considered important for many aspects of cognition, but it had not been linked to memory
Of relevance here was the unexpected number of reports in the episodic memory literature that identified PPC activations during memory tasks
Summary
The role of posterior parietal cortex (PPC) in various forms of memory is a current topic of interest in the broader field of cognitive neuroscience. In a set of three paired-associates experiments testing the bilateral PPC patients, we found that they were not impaired on the memory retrieval aspect of a word pair task (Giovanello et al, 2006), linking variable amounts of information with items in a fan task (Radvansky, 2005), or at learning audio/visual pairs. The PPC patients’ numeric confidence ratings were significantly lower than the control participants in the audio/visual task, but the number of remember responses was no different from controls in the word pairs experiment (Berryhill et al, 2009).
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