Stress and Memory

Term Paper # 99454

Medical and Health
Psychology > Memory
Psychology > Physiological

Stress and Memory

This paper researches how stress produces physiological effects that directly impact memory.

2,016 words () | 8 sources | MLA | 2007 United States

Paper Summary:

The paper illustrates the relationship between stress load and stress response and its affect on working memory during the typical circadian cycle. The paper's methodological approach relies on the hypothesis that magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can be accurately utilized to identify neural activation patterns related to Cortisol that is released due to stress. The paper concludes that greater research is necessary in order to attain a better understanding of how Cortisol, through its derivatives and precursors, impacts the brain's ability to enable memory.

Outline:
Introduction
Stress Hormone: Cortisol
Cortisol Receptor Distribution
The Frontal Lobe and Working Memory
Circadian Effects, Glucocorticoids and Imagery

From the Paper:

"Stress is something that all humans experience. It is, in fact, part of the human experience. Yet, the affect of stress on the individual as well as its effects to the person experiencing it has been variously conceived by many researchers since its recognition as valid topic of research. While it is clear that most individuals conceive stress in different ways as an emotional response to various circumstances, the medical and psychological community have identified stress, or rather the body's reaction to it, as a having a potentially negative impact on individual health, mental performance, as well as memory (Zautra 36-8). In the area of mental performance and memory, stress and stressful situations greatly impact individual ability to perform to one's ability."

Sample of Sources Used:

Andrade, Jackie, ed. Working Memory in Perspective. Hove, England.: Psychology Press, 2001.
Atanasov, Atanas G., et al. "Organotins Disrupt the 11[beta]-Hydroxysteroid Dehydrogenase Type 2-Dependent Local Inactivation of Glucocorticoids." Environmental Health Perspectives 113.11 (2005): 1600+.
Emilien, Gerard, et al. Memory: Neuropsychological, Imaging, and Psychopharmacological Perspectives. Hove, England: Psychology Press, 2003.
Kushida, Clete A. Sleep Deprivation: Basic Science, Physiology, and Behavior. New York: Marcel Dekker, 2005.
Parker, Amamda, Edward L. Wilding, and Timothy J. Bussey, eds. The Cognitive Neuroscience of Memory: Encoding and Retrieval. New York: Psychology Press, 2002.