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23 - Adaptive Memory

Fitness-Relevant Tunings in Human Memory

from Part II - Evolution of Memory Processes

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 May 2022

By
James S. Nairne  and
Michelle E. Coverdale
Edited by
Mark A. Krause ,
Karen L. Hollis  and
Mauricio R. Papini
Mark A. Krause
Affiliation:
Southern Oregon University
Karen L. Hollis
Affiliation:
Mount Holyoke College, Massachusetts
Mauricio R. Papini
Affiliation:
Texas Christian University
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Summary

Human memory is an evolved trait, fine-tuned over generations by the process of natural selection. Using the technique of forward engineering, our laboratory has derived empirical predictions about remembering by focusing on the main criteria that drive natural selection. Memory systems must have evolved because they enhanced fitness — i.e., survival and reproduction — so we reasoned that memory’s operating characteristics likely show sensitivity to fitness dimensions. As we review in this chapter, this strategy has led to the discovery of a number of novel phenomena, some of which are among the most potent memory-enhancing techniques yet discovered in the memory field. Included in our discussion are the effects of survival processing, animacy, potential contamination from disease, and finding potential mating partners. Throughout, we consider the merits of taking an evolutionary perspective on the discovery and interpretation of mnemonic phenomena.

Keywords

adaptive memoryadaptationsurvival processinganimacycontaminationmating
Type
Chapter
Information
Evolution of Learning and Memory Mechanisms , pp. 406 - 423
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

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