Threat Impairs the Organization of Memory Around Motivational Context

Abstract

Previous work highlighted a critical role for top–down goals in shifting memory organization, namely, through studying the downstream influences of event segmentation and task switching on free recall. Here, we extend these frameworks into the realm of motivation, by comparing how threat motivation influences memory organization by capturing free recall dynamics. In Study 1, we manipulated individuals' motivation to successfully encode information by the threat of exposure to aversive sounds for forgetting. In Study 2, we conducted a parallel study manipulating motivation via instruction rather than threat, allowing us to examine changes directly related to threat motivation. Our findings showed that motivation to avoid threat broadly enhances memory for items presented within a threatening context, regardless of whether items were directly associated with the threat or not. Concurrently, these memory enhancements coincide with a decrease in the organization of memory around motivationally relevant features. These results highlight the importance of considering motivational valence when conceptualizing memory organization within adaptive memory frameworks.