Nontechnical Abstract Context Dependence of Learning and Memory Processes Memory is usually best when the act of remembering takes place in a presence of the background stimuli ( contextual stimuli ) that were also present when learning occurred. However, this is not always true; memory for some types of material is not very context- dependent. This project seeks to understand why some memories are context-dependent and others are context-independent. It will study the role of contextual stimuli in classical conditioning, a fundamental example of associative learning that is connected with many aspects of cognition and behavior in animals and humans. Rats will learn that one stimulus, such as a tone or a light or a distinctive flavor, signals the occurrence of another stimulus, such as a food pellet or a mild footshock or malaise. The signal comes evoke behaviors that indicate that learning (and also remembering) have taken place. The project will test the effects of changing the context on various forms of this kind of learning. Some, but not all, are context-dependent. For example, if a signal is associated with different stimuli (e.g., shock and food) at different times, the second association, but not the first, is typically context-dependent. The project will test several ideas of why this should be so. It will also study several different kinds of cues that can provide a context. This research will have major impact on theories of learning, memory, and acquired motivation. It will also be relevant to research on the neurobiology of learning memory. And the results may help us design better cognitive- behavioral therapies of human behavior disorders (e.g., drug dependence and anxiety), which may be successful or not depending on whether the learning they involve is context- independent.
