The value of an episode: Memory and decision making supported by single experiences

G. Elliott Wimmer
University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf

Rewarding and aversive experiences exert a strong influence on later decision making. While decades of 
research have shown how repeated reinforcement gradually shapes preference, decisions can also be 
driven by single experiences. Surprisingly, little is known about how episodic experiences influence 
behavior. One perspective gaining attention in decision making is that decision makers sample episodic 
representations in order to make a choice, in addition to or instead of using well-learned values. We 
investigated memory for the value of episodic experiences using pain or monetary reward in multiple 
experiments. During experimental trials, incidental trial-unique neutral object pictures were presented 
during the experience of the valued event. Afterwards, we administered a surprise memory test for the 
level of value experienced with the object. Across experiments, we found that participants could indeed 
correctly remember the level of value associated with the originally neutral pictures. This memory 
persisted after one week, and memory could also be used to support incentivized choices. In the pain 
experiment, fMRI analyses revealed that forgotten vs. remembered pain value memory was associated 
with increased activity in the anterior insula. Connectivity and pattern similarity analyses also support a 
role for the modulation of visual processing during pain value memory formation. Overall, our results 
suggest that affective experiences can build reliable associations between the value of an experience 
and episodic stimuli. Our results provide initial insight into how episodic memory can support value-
based decision making.