The von Restorff effect in amnesia: the contribution of the hippocampal system to novelty-related memory enhancements

• Published in: Journal of cognitive neuroscience Vol. 16; no. 1; p. 15
• Main Authors: Kishiyama, M M, Yonelinas, A P, Lazzara, M M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01-01-2004
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Amnesia - etiology; Amnesia - physiopathology; Attention; Awareness; Brain Damage, Chronic - complications; Brain Damage, Chronic - physiopathology; Hippocampus - pathology; Hippocampus - physiopathology; Humans; Hypoxia, Brain - complications; Hypoxia, Brain - physiopathology; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Matched-Pair Analysis; Memory - physiology; Mental Recall; Middle Aged; Pattern Recognition, Visual - physiology; Recognition (Psychology); Temporal Lobe - pathology; Temporal Lobe - physiopathology; Thalamus - pathology; Thalamus - physiopathology
• ISSN: 0898-929X
• DOI: 10.1162/089892904322755511

The ability to detect novelty is a characteristic of all mammalian nervous systems (Sokolov, 1963), and it plays a critical role in memory in the sense that items that are novel, or distinctive, are remembered better than those that are less distinct (von Restorff, 1933). Although several brain areas are sensitive to stimulus novelty, it is not yet known which regions play a role in producing novelty-related effects on memory. In the current study, we investigated novelty effects on recognition memory in amnesic patients and healthy control subjects. The control subjects demonstrated better recognition for items that were novel (i.e., presented in an infrequent color), and this effect was found for both recollection and familiarity-based responses. However, the novelty advantage was effectively eliminated in patients with extensive medial temporal lobe damage, mild hypoxic patients expected to have relatively selective hippocampal damage, and in a patient with thalamic lesions. The results indicate that the human medial temporal lobes play a critical role in producing normal novelty effects in memory.