Speeding Up the Learning Process: A Multimodal Neuroimaging Investigation into the Acceleration of Motor Memory Consolidation

Memory consolidation – the process by which recently acquired memories are transformed into stable, long-term memory traces – has long been considered to be a relatively slow process that can span hours to days. Pioneering work over the last decade has demonstrated that this consolidation process can be accelerated if the learned information was consistent with pre-existing knowledge (referred to as cognitive schemata). While considerable evidence in favor of this schema model of memory consolidation has been shown for declarative memory (i.e., memory for facts and events), such experimental support is surprisingly lacking in the motor memory domain. Investigating whether and how new movements can be rapidly learned – and therefore identifying procedures to bypass the standard and slower consolidation process – has implications for the development of interventions targeting age- or pathology-related declines in motor functioning. The goal of this research program is to use cutting-edge multimodal neuroimaging approaches (Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Electroencephalography) in combination with non-invasive brain stimulation and a unique manipulation of an established motor learning paradigm in order to assess the behavioral and neural correlates of schema-mediated motor memory consolidation in young healthy adults. This research program will offer novel insights into how motor learning and consolidation can be accelerated via pre-existing cognitive-motor schemata.