Selective memory modulation following its reactivation in virtual reality

While modulation of episodic memory has gained increasing interest, an ongoing challenge has been to reveal its underlying mechanisms in naturalistic settings. Virtual reality (VR) provides a unique framework for studying episodic memory modulation using immersive environments. Here, we tested whether memory reactivation in VR would selectively modulate memory strength for items within scenes. Such approaches may serve as a steppingstone toward future applications geared to modulate memory strength. The first experiment designed a VR memory reactivation paradigm, in which participants encoded scenes containing multiple objects in immersive VR environments. A brief wireframe mode enabled memory retrieval without detailed features of the encoded environment. Subsequent object memory strength remained intact, establishing a framework for further intervention. The second experiment used this paradigm to test whether cueing objects within the reactivated scene would enable selective memory modulation. The results showed high recognition accuracy and confidence for cued objects relative to uncued objects. These findings suggest that targeted memory reactivation in VR may selectively modulate episodic memory, opening novel future pathways for enhancing or downregulating memory.