Memories of and influenced by the Trier Social Stress Test

• Published in: Psychoneuroendocrinology Vol. 105; pp. 98 - 104
• Main Author: Wolf, Oliver T.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01.07.2019
• Subjects: Animals; Cognition; Cortisol; Humans; Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System - metabolism; Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System - physiopathology; Hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis; Interpersonal Relations; Memory; Memory Consolidation - physiology; Memory, Long-Term - physiology; Mental Recall - physiology; Stress; Stress, Psychological - metabolism; Stress, Psychological - physiopathology; Sympathetic nervous system (SNS); Sympathetic Nervous System - metabolism; Sympathetic Nervous System - physiopathology; Cortisol; Cognition; Hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis; Memory; Stress; Sympathetic nervous system (SNS)
• ISSN: 0306-4530; 1873-3360
• DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2018.10.031

•The acute influence of stress on memory is described.•The impact of stress is memory phase dependent.•The relationship between the stressor and the learning material is crucial.•The TSST can be used to assess memories of a stressful episode. Psychosocial stress influences cognition, affect and behavior. This current review summarizes the impact of acute stress on human long-term memory taking a neuroendocrine perspective. In this respect the stress associated increase in activity of the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) and the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis are key. A special focus will be placed on findings obtained with the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST). This paradigm can be used to induce stress before or after a memory task. It was shown repeatedly that stress enhances long-term consolidation but impairs long term memory retrieval. However the TSST can also be used to assess memories of this stressful episode itself. The latter requires a standardized presentation of relevant stimuli during the TSST as well as a carefully designed control condition. Moreover special care has to be taken to control potential influences on visual exploration and working memory in order to correctly interpret observed effects on memory. The results obtained so far fit to the idea of enhanced encoding of salient information under stress. These findings are of relevance for educational, organizational and clinical applications.