Abstract: The interaction of emotion and working memory as subtopic of emotion and cognition is of considerable interests both clinically and theoretically. Processing efficiency theory suggests that effects of negative emotion (e.g. anxiety) on cognitive performance may be mediated by effect on working memory. The research about negative emotion and working memory not only contributes to the development of emotion and cognition theory, but also gives supports for clinical therapy of affective disorders. In the current dissertation, event-related potential and functional magnetic resonance imaging techniques are used to examine the relationship between emotion and three subsystems of working memory. From the perspectives of time course processing, spatial localization and functional connectivity between emotional brain and cognitive brain, these series of studies combine the behavior, psychometrics and brain together to explore the underlying mechanism of emotion and working memory interaction.

Key words: emotion, spatial working memory, verbal working memory, selective effect