“Unseen strategies” what can the experience of Aphantasia teach us about cognitive strategies in memory?

Aphantasia, originally characterised by a deficit in visual mental imagery, has been expanded to included deficits in other modalities of mental imagery e.g., auditory imagery. As these forms of imagery are considered to be key components of memory rehearsal, encoding and recall, Aphantasia has inspired much quantitative research exploring its relationship with memory. A qualitative methodology is employed here to explore compensatory strategies which quantitative findings suggest. Through Thematic Analysis, three subordinate themes are identified (Semantic Reliance, Condensation of Inner Speech, and External Recoding) representing possible compensatory strategies for further investigation in quantitative research. Findings additionally include supporting evidence of memory deficits and refute claims of metacognitive deficits among Aphantasic individuals. • Aphantasia examined using qualitative methodology to gain insight into compensatory memory strategies. • Three potential compensatory strategies identified and discussed: Semantic Reliance’, ‘Condensation of Inner Speech’, and ‘External Recoding”. • Two participants suggest that their capacities for two different forms of mental imagery (visual imagery and emotional imagery) may have been present at a younger age before declining in adolescence.