title: Eye movements disrupt episodic future thinking.
abstract: Remembering the past and imagining the future both rely on complex mental imagery. We considered the possibility that constructing a future scene might tap a component of mental imagery that is not as critical for remembering past scenes. Whereas visual imagery plays an important role in remembering the past, we predicted that spatial imagery plays a crucial role in imagining the future. For the purpose of teasing apart the different components underpinning scene construction in the two experiences of recalling episodic memories and shaping novel future events, we used a paradigm that might selectively affect one of these components (i.e., the spatial). Participants performed concurrent eye movements while remembering the past and imagining the future. These concurrent eye movements selectively interfere with spatial imagery, while sparing visual imagery. Eye movements prevented participants from imagining complex and detailed future scenes, but had no comparable effect on the recollection of past scenes. Similarities between remembering the past and imagining the future are coupled with some differences. The present findings uncover another fundamental divergence between the two processes.
authors.affiliation: a Centre de Recherche de l'Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière , INSERM , Paris , France.
authors.forename: Stefania
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: de Vito
authors.forename: Antimo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Buonocore
authors.forename: Jean-François
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Bonnefon
authors.forename: Sergio
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Della Sala
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003463:Cues; D005133:Eye Movements / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007092:Imagination / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D061212:Memory, Episodic; D011939:Mental Recall; D013997:Time Factors; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Episodic future thinking; Eye movements; Prospection; Spatial mental imagery; Visual imagery