Conférence CRNL "Episodic memory in ecological and embodied situations: new insights from studies in virtual reality"

Episodic memory is a complex memory necessary to memorize specific events experienced personally, but still rarely studied in the laboratory in its most complete definition and conditions close to real life. Yet virtual reality offers new opportunities to study human cognition in realistic, interactive and controlled environments. We present a series of behavioural works on the new episodic memory trace in simulated ecological situations with more or less immersive virtual reality devices until the incarnation in avatars. Beyond its ecological validity, the virtual reality approach leads us to understand a more embodied conception of episodic memory and, more broadly, the system of self-memory. To conclude, the contributions of this new approach will be put in perspective in the field of neuropsychology assessment and rehabilitation.

Pr. Pascale Piolino, Laboratoire Mémoire Cerveau et Cognition, Université de Paris Cité.