CoChat
Sign Up
Cited by 161Memory Processes and InfluencesMemory and Neural MechanismsCognitive Functions and Memory

Episodic memory processes mediated by the medial temporal lobes contribute to open-ended problem solving

Sheldon, Signy, McAndrews, Mary Pat, Moscovitch, Morris·2011·Neuropsychologia
DOI 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2011.04.021
Open this paper in CoChat — free account

Abstract

The present study investigated the contribution of episodic memory processes mediated by the medial temporal lobes to solving open-ended problems: problems for which standard solutions or set procedures for arriving at solutions do not exist. Patients with unilateral temporal lobe epilepsy and excisions (TLE), older adults and control participants were asked to describe detailed solutions to various open-ended, social scenarios. TLE patients and older adults, both having deficits in episodic memory, provided fewer steps relevant to the given solution than their comparison group. Segmenting the descriptions into details using the methods of the Autobiographical Interview, we also found that patients with TLE and older adults provided fewer internal (episodic) details but a similar number of external (semantic) details compared to their control group. These findings are the first to demonstrate that processes underlying episodic memory, in particular those enabling the retrieval of experiential detail and episodic simulation may contribute to open-ended problem solving. Given that we examined groups with medial temporal lobe lesions and known episodic memory dysfunction, these results further suggest that the negative consequences of episodic memory loss resulting from damage to or deterioration of the medial temporal lobes extend beyond that of memory to include other domains, such as problem solving.

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2011.04.021

Cites

8 of 8 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Recomputing p-values needs the paper’s full text.

Claims the paper makes

This paper’s full text isn’t openly available, so its claims and self-check weren’t run. The registry and citation checks still apply.

Claims other papers make about this one

Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

  • An association has been found between deficits in episodic memory functioning and inability to generate relevant details in an open-ended problem solving task.

    “An association has been found between having deficits in episodic memory functioning and being unable to generate relevant details in an open-ended problem solving task [85].”

    From Episodic Memory in AI Agents Poses Risks that Should be Studied and Mitigated (2025) · cites this paper as [85]

Cites

Flagged first, then by citations

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Sheldon, S., McAndrews, M. P., & Moscovitch, M.
Affiliations
  • University of Toronto (CA)
  • University Health Network (CA)
Corresponding author
Sheldon, Signy
ORCID
Venue
Neuropsychologia
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2011-07
Volume
49
Issue
9
Pages
2439-2447
ISSN
0028-3932 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2011.04.021
OpenAlex
W2070573425
Cited by
161
References
8
Citations by year
2026: 6 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 12 · 2023: 10 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 13 · 2020: 10 · 2019: 15 · 2018: 15 · 2017: 13 · 2016: 17 · 2015: 13 · 2014: 7 · 2013: 11 · 2012: 11
FWCI
4.71
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Licence
www.elsevier.com/tdm/userlicense/1.0/ (tdm)
Locations
  • Neuropsychologia (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Memory Processes and Influences
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Memory and Neural Mechanisms
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Cognitive Functions and Memory
Keywords
episodic memory, medial temporal lobe, open-ended problem solving, temporal lobe epilepsy, autobiographical memory, episodic simulation, semantic memory, older adults, memory impairment, social problem solving
MeSH terms
Adult, Aging, Epilepsy, Temporal Lobe, Female, Humans, Imagination, Male, Memory Disorders, Middle Aged, Problem Solving, Reference Values, Temporal Lobe, Case-Control Studies, Matched-Pair Analysis, Young Adult, Memory, Episodic

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review