Presentation Information
[20301-06-04]Mental Time Travel Impairments in Neurodegenerative Diseases
*Valentina La Corte1,2, Pascale Piolino1,2 (1. Memory, Brain and Cognition lab,UR 7536, University Paris Cité (France), 2. Institut Universitaire de France (France))
Keywords:
mental time travel,memory,neurodegenrative diseases,personal temporality,episodic future thinking
In recent decades, research on memory processes has expanded to include the mechanisms involved in envisioning future events, within the broader framework of mental time travel (MTT). Prospection refers to a broad and complex set of cognitive processes that enable individuals to anticipate, plan for, and mentally simulate future experiences.This study focuses on a specific form of episodic prospection known as episodic future thinking (EFT)—the capacity to project oneself forward in time to pre-experience personal future events.Previous studies have documented impairments in EFT among individuals with neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and semantic dementia (SD), often related to long-term memory deficits. However, the neurocognitive mechanisms underlying these deficits remain poorly understood—particularly regarding the role of temporal distance.The aims of the present study were:
(i) to investigate MTT capacities across different temporal distances in AD and SD patients;
(ii) to disentangle the relationship between EFT and long-term memory deficits in these neurodegenerative profiles.Our results show that AD patients exhibited significant impairments in EFT for near-future events, while their performance for distant-future scenarios was relatively preserved. Additionally, they demonstrated deficits in past event recollection regardless of temporal distance. In contrast, SD patients showed an opposite pattern: preserved EFT for near and intermediate future events, but impaired performance for distant ones. Regarding the past dimension, SD patients showed deficits specifically for remote events.These findings contribute to a more nuanced understanding of how episodic and semantic memory impairments differentially affect past and future-oriented cognition in neurodegenerative conditions. The results carry both theoretical significance and potential clinical applications.
(i) to investigate MTT capacities across different temporal distances in AD and SD patients;
(ii) to disentangle the relationship between EFT and long-term memory deficits in these neurodegenerative profiles.Our results show that AD patients exhibited significant impairments in EFT for near-future events, while their performance for distant-future scenarios was relatively preserved. Additionally, they demonstrated deficits in past event recollection regardless of temporal distance. In contrast, SD patients showed an opposite pattern: preserved EFT for near and intermediate future events, but impaired performance for distant ones. Regarding the past dimension, SD patients showed deficits specifically for remote events.These findings contribute to a more nuanced understanding of how episodic and semantic memory impairments differentially affect past and future-oriented cognition in neurodegenerative conditions. The results carry both theoretical significance and potential clinical applications.