Sense of agency strengthens memory for self-caused spatial information

Why do some experiences remain vivid while others fade? One factor may be the sense of agency (SoA), which shares self-referential mechanisms with episodic memory. We investigated whether SoA over action outcomes modulates item and spatial long-term memory. During intentional encoding, participants' keypresses moved an object either congruently or incongruently with the chosen direction. One hour later, item and spatial memory were tested. Participants reported higher SoA in congruent trials. Congruency and higher SoA ratings were associated with faster item-recognition responses without changes in sensitivity, suggesting enhanced decision efficiency rather than improved item-memory quality. In contrast, both predicted higher spatial memory accuracy, independent of encoding duration, spatial bias, or guessing. These findings indicate that perceived control during encoding selectively strengthens memory for the spatial consequences of one's actions, supporting a role for SoA in binding actions and outcomes into episodic representations.