A wandering mind is a forgetful mind: A systematic review on the influence of mind wandering on episodic memory encoding

In the last two decades, mind wandering has received increased interest in the field of cognitive neuroscience. Despite the strong links between attention and memory, its effect on episodic memory encoding has only been recently investigated. To date, there is no systematic synthesis on this link. Following the PRISMA guidelines, a systematic review of the literature on mind wandering and episodic memory was conducted. Five online bibliographic databases (PsycNET, Pubmed, ScienceDirect, Web of Science and Taylor & Francis) were searched. Twenty-four studies were eligible for the current review and were compared based on their methodologies and results. Overall, stimulus-independent mind wandering appeared to be a reliable negative factor influencing the encoding of both words and audio-visual stimuli. However, a few studies pointed out a potential positive effect of stimulus-dependent mind wandering on episodic memory encoding. Theoretical explanations of these results, the limits of existing investigations and avenues for potential future research are discussed.

Automated summary

In the field of cognitive neuroscience, mind wandering has gained increasing interest in the past two decades. However, its effect on episodic memory encoding has only recently been studied and there is currently no systematic synthesis on this topic. This systematic review examined the literature on mind wandering and episodic memory, finding that stimulus-independent mind wandering negatively affects the encoding of both words and audio-visual stimuli. However, some studies suggest a potential positive effect of stimulus-dependent mind wandering on episodic memory encoding. Theoretical explanations, limitations of existing research, and possible future research directions are discussed.