Configural association theory: The role of the hippocampal formation in learning, memory, and amnesia

TLDR

Memory is divided into a simple associative process that does not depend on the hippocampus and a configural associative process that requires the hippocampal formation. The paper proposes that the hippocampal formation uniquely supports the acquisition and storage of configural associations, tests this hypothesis with two experiments, and applies the theory to explain impairments caused by hippocampal damage. The theory describes a simple associative system that adjusts elementary stimulus associations and a configural associative system that merges elementary representations into unique configural representations, enabling associations with other elementary representations and accounting for tasks such as place learning, recognition memory, latent inhibition, serial‑compound conditioning, discrimination‑reversal learning, and stimulus‑selection. The theory accounts for a wide range of hippocampal damage impairments, is compared to other views of hippocampal function, and suggests directions for future research.

Abstract

It is proposed that the hippocampal formation makes a unique contribution to memory by providing the neural basis for the initial acquisition and storage of configural associations among events. A distinction is made between two kinds of memory processes: a simple associative process, which does not depend on the hippocampal formation, and a configural associative process, which does. The simple associative system records the organism’s experiences as changes in the strength of associations between elementary stimulus events. The configural associative system combines the representations of elementary stimulus events to construct unique representations and allows for the formation of associations between these configural representations and other elementary representations. In the present paper, the results of two experiments designed to test predictions of our theory are described. We then illustrate how the theory can be applied to explain a wide range of impairments that have been observed when learning and memory tasks have been employed to assess the effect of hippocampal formation damage. These include tasks that measure place learning, recognition memory, latent inhibition, serial-compound conditioning, discrimination-reversal learning, and stimulus-selection processes. The relationship of our position to some other views of hippocampal function is discussed, and we conclude with suggestions for future research.