March 26, 2026

#41 - Dr. Lars Schwabe - Stress, Memory, and Behavioral Flexibility

55 minutes

In this episode of the Research Bites Podcast, Dr. Kristina Spaulding talks with Dr. Lars Schwabe about what happens to learning and memory when the brain is under stress—and why those changes matter for behavior, training, and mental health.

They begin by unpacking how memory works in the first place, walking through the stages of encoding, consolidation, and retrieval. From there, they explore the still-debated idea of reconsolidation—the possibility that when memories are retrieved, they may briefly become modifiable. Dr. Schwabe discusses the evidence behind this concept, along with early attempts to reduce the emotional intensity of memories in conditions such as addiction and PTSD.

The conversation then turns to the physiology of stress. Dr. Schwabe explains how acute stress activates the sympathetic nervous system and the HPA axis, releasing cortisol and reshaping how the brain prioritizes information. Under these conditions, the amygdala tends to amplify emotionally salient details. As a result, stress can strengthen central aspects of emotional and threat-related learning while weakening contextual information and working memory.

These shifts have important behavioral consequences. When stress is high, certain types of learning becomes stronger—one possible pathway to fear generalization. Dr. Schwabe also discusses how stress can change the type of behavior we rely on. Goal-directed behavior—associated with the prefrontal cortex—allows flexible updating based on outcomes. Habitual behavior, more closely tied to other brain areas, is faster but less flexible. Under stress, the balance can shift toward habits and away from flexible decision-making.

Throughout the conversation, Dr. Spaulding and Dr. Schwabe explore what these findings might mean for animal training, resilience, learned helplessness, and the treatment of stress-related disorders. They also emphasize an important reality of scientific work: translating laboratory findings into real-world practice is complex, and individual differences play a major role in how stress affects learning and beha

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