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In three experiments, subjects performed a free-association task while the level of a simultaneous load was manipulated in various ways. In all three experiments subjects in the low-load conditions provided significantly more diverse and original associations compared with subjects in the high-load conditions, who exhibited high consensus. In an additional experiment, we found increased semantic priming of immediate associations under high load and of remote associations under low load. Taken together, these findings imply that activation of associations is an exploratory process by default, but is narrowed to exploiting the more immediate associations under conditions of high load. We propose a potential mechanism for processing associations in exploration and in exploitation modes, and suggest clinical implications.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1177\/0956797616634487","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2016,4,28]],"date-time":"2016-04-28T12:39:20Z","timestamp":1461847160000},"page":"776-789","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1177\/sage-journals-update-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":31,"title":["Associative Activation and Its Relation to Exploration and Exploitation in the Brain"],"prefix":"10.1177","volume":"27","author":[{"given":"Shira","family":"Baror","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"The Leslie and Susan Gonda Multidisciplinary Brain Research Center, Bar-Ilan University"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Moshe","family":"Bar","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"The Leslie and Susan Gonda Multidisciplinary Brain Research Center, Bar-Ilan University"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"179","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2016,4,27]]},"reference":[{"key":"bibr1-0956797616634487","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/s0022-5371(83)90201-3"},{"key":"bibr2-0956797616634487","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"322","DOI":"10.1152\/jn.00830.2009","volume":"104","author":"Andrews-Hanna J. 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