Research reportPutting memory in context: Dissociating memories by distinguishing the nature of context

- Adaptations of SOR tasks allow memory to be assessed by manipulating context.
- The term context is vaguely defined and broadly applied making comparisons difficult.
- Different neural systems process memory depending on the context being used.
- Different neural systems process context based memory depending on the question being asked.
- There is an urgent need to clearly define how context is experimentally manipulated.

In recent years, spontaneous recognition tasks have become commonplace methods of assessing memory in animals. Adaptations of these tasks allow us to look at the role of objects, contexts and spatial locations in memory. Recent findings have highlighted that not all types of contexts in these tasks rely on the same neural systems. Similarly, asking different questions about the same types of context can allow the dissociation of neural systems underlying these memories. Here we review the current position in how context is used in such tasks, and we consider the fundamental importance of clearly defining both the nature of the context being used, and the questions asked of it in order to fully appreciate the neural and cognitive mechanisms being studied in such tasks.