Abstract
Face memory, including the ability to recall a person’s name, is of major importance in social contexts. Like many other memory functions, it may rely on sleep. We investigated whether targeted memory reactivation during sleep could improve associative and perceptual aspects of face memory. Participants studied 80 face-name pairs, and then a subset of spoken names with associated background music was presented unobtrusively during a daytime nap. This manipulation preferentially improved name recall and face recognition for those reactivated face-name pairs, as modulated by two factors related to sleep quality; memory benefits were positively correlated with the duration of stage N3 sleep (slow-wave sleep) and negatively correlated with measures of sleep disruption. We conclude that (a) reactivation of specific face-name memories during sleep can strengthen these associations and the constituent memories, and that (b) the effectiveness of this reactivation depends on uninterrupted N3 sleep.
Highlights
We often rely on face recognition and name recall—such as when we notice friends from a distance and call to them by their names
What determines which memories continue to be enduringly available and which are forgotten? Given that the human brain is remarkably active during sleep, researchers have asserted that neural events during sleep may function to stabilize and strengthen recently acquired memories[1,2,3,4]
The notion that Targeted Memory Reactivation (TMR) benefits memory through reactivation is supported by neuronal evidence of hippocampal place cell replay engaged following the presentation of learning-related sounds during sleep[11]
Summary
We often rely on face recognition and name recall—such as when we notice friends from a distance and call to them by their names. Given that the human brain is remarkably active during sleep, researchers have asserted that neural events during sleep may function to stabilize and strengthen recently acquired memories[1,2,3,4]. The delineation of these neural events and their specific ramifications for memory has become increasingly central to memory research and the science of learning. People remember information associated with the cue stimulus better than other information that was well-learned, a frequently reported finding confirmed in a recent meta-analysis[10]. The notion that TMR benefits memory through reactivation is supported by neuronal evidence of hippocampal place cell replay engaged following the presentation of learning-related sounds during sleep[11]
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