Prospective memory, emotional valence, and multiple sclerosis

Abstract

Cognitive impairments in multiple sclerosis (MS) extend to tasks demanding prospective memory (PM): remembering to perform an intended act during ongoing activity. This study investigated whether emotional content influenced the effects of MS on PM, following evidence that emotional valence can influence other aspects of memory. Thirty participants with MS were compared to 30 controls on a PM task, Virtual Week, in which emotion was manipulated. People with MS showed a consistent deficit in PM performance across manipulations of task and valence. Results indicated that emotionally positive tasks improved the PM performance of MS participants, with implications for rehabilitation.

Keywords:

• Prospective memory
• Multiple sclerosis
• Emotional saliency
• Emotional valence
• Positivity benefit
• Event-based
• Time-based

Acknowledgments

Support for this study was provided by a Discovery Project grant from the Australian Research Council. We acknowledge the help of Trevor Daniels in programming Virtual Week and the help of Tristan Brumby-Rendell in developing the emotional version of Virtual Week. We also acknowledge the support of the MS Society Victoria in recruiting participants.