Tarek Amer

Presenter: Tarek Amer

Title: Gaze patterns reveal attention-based modulation of pattern separation in young and older adults

Abstract:
The ability to differentiate highly overlapping stimuli or experiences in memory is supported by pattern separation – a process by which similar inputs are differentiated and transformed into less similar outputs. Although pattern separation has traditionally been conceived of and studied as a mnemonic process, the contribution of cognitive control processes, involved in a similar interference resolution function, has yet to be examined. Using eye-tracking, I will first show that eye movements can be used as a sensitive and reliable measure of pattern separation, based on performance on the validated and widely used Mnemonic Similarity Task. I will then show in three separate experiments that pattern separation, measured through eye movements, can be manipulated by changing attentional demands (as a means to manipulate cognitive control) during a perceptual discrimination task. Finally, I will present evidence that age-related pattern separation deficits can, at least partly, be accounted for by changes in cognitive control function.