A Pocket Guide for the Experimenter Studying Daily Rhythms in Memory-Related Behavior

Abstract

The study of circadian rhythms requires a deep understanding of how biological systems shift on a daily timescale. Similarly, the study of memory requires an appreciation of how memory mechanisms change across time. These complexities create serious challenges for examining circadian rhythms in memory-related behavior, an undertaking in which both sets of considerations must be integrated and assessed simultaneously. In this article, we present a pocket guide with an experimental design optimized to distinguish circadian influences on different stages of the memory process. Our approach distills ideas from a complex body of literature, offering a simple path forward in circadian memory research. © 2025 Wiley Periodicals LLC.