Three-Way Bindings in Associative Recognition

To avoid interference among similar memory traces it is required to form complex memory structures that include multiple components of the event, which helps one to distinguish one event from another. In a laboratory setting, these complex binding structures have been studied through a paradigm where one has to form a memory structure that includes two items and the context together (i.e., three-way binding). However, despite the long history of the theoretical concept, its importance, and the existence of the laboratory paradigm, three-way binding structures have only been examined in recall paradigms. Moreover, not all memory models consider the ability to form three-way binding structures as a default. Therefore, the current study examined the use and formation of three-way binding structures in an associative recognition paradigm. Results provide evidence that three-way binding structures are used during recognition, which implies that it is critical for memory models to properly represent them.