An EEG Study on Loneliness and Recognition Memory

<p>Loneliness, the perception of unmet social needs, has been shown to relate to recollection-based recognition deficits, but the relationship between loneliness and recognition memory (i.e., recollection and familiarity) has not been thoroughly examined. The current study hypothesized that more lonely individuals would have lower recognition memory performance, specifically recollection, with smaller ERP parietal old-new effects than less lonely individuals. Forty participants, grouped into less (<em>n</em> = 13) and more (<em>n</em> = 9) lonely groups based on their R-UCLA responses, completed an associative memory task. EEG was used to assess recognition memory effects. Results showed no significant difference in both behavioral and ERP recognition memory effects between lonely groups, showing that lonelier individuals had no specific recollection-based recognition memory deficits. Evidence of a negative trend between loneliness and recognition memory effects was observed. Future research should include more participants and better methodology to explore the loneliness-recognition memory relationship.</p> <p><em>Keywords: </em>loneliness, perceived social isolation, memory, recognition memory,<em> </em>electroencephalogram (EEG), event-related potential (ERP)</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Arts - Psychology

Level thesis:degree_level

Thesis

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Psychology

Year dc:date.available

2020

Author dc:creator

• Chek, Carmen Jia Wen

Contributors dc:contributor

• Dr. James Schaeffer
• Dr. Steven Estrada
• Dr. Nathan Sparkman

• loneliness
• perceived social isolation
• memory
• recognition memory
• EEG
• event-related potential (ERP) memory effects
• Cognitive Neuroscience
• Other Neuroscience and Neurobiology
• Psychology

Repository record dc:identifier

https://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/etds/336

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:scholarworks.sfasu.edu:etds-1358