Age-related differences in EEG Oscillatory Subsequent Memory Effects

Poster Session D - Monday, April 15, 2024, 8:00 – 10:00 am EDT, Sheraton Hall ABC

SEHAM KAFAFI¹ (skafafi@nd.edu), JOSHUA KOEN², RACHELLE PICHOT³, DANIEL HENRECKSON⁴, MORGAN FOLEY⁵, JESSICA PAYNE⁶; ¹University of Notre Dame

The present study investigated age differences in the oscillatory correlates of successful memory encoding. Young and older adults viewed images of scenes and objects while undergoing EEG recording for a subsequent memory test. Behaviorally, recognition accuracy was lower in older adults compared to younger adults for scene stimuli. There were no age differences in recognition memory for object stimuli. A time-frequency analysis identified age-variant and age-invariant subsequent memory effects in the theta and beta frequency bands (regardless of image type). The age-invariant subsequent memory effects included theta desynchronization (4-7 Hz) and synchronization for subsequent hits relative to misses, and beta desynchronization (13-17 Hz) over near global channels. Age-variant subsequent memory effects were observed in theta over occipital channels. These findings corroborate some previous studies of neural oscillations and memory performance and help identify the neural correlates of age-related memory decline. Future research is needed to identify the role of theta desynchronization in memory encoding in older adults.

Topic Area: LONG-TERM MEMORY: Episodic