Autobiographical memory specificity in response to emotion pictorial cues among non‐clinical participants

The objective of the current study was to investigate whether emotion pictorial cues increase memory specificity among non‐clinical participants. Undergraduate university students were presented with emotion word and pictorial cues on a prompted and non‐prompted version of the Autobiographical Memory Test (AMT). In comparison to pictorial cues, participants retrieved significantly fewer specific autobiographical memories in response to word cues on the prompted AMT; however, there was no significant difference on the non‐prompted AMT. Participants also retrieved significantly fewer specific memories in response to both word and pictorial cues on the non‐prompted AMT compared with the prompted AMT. These results provide support for the hypothesis that among non‐clinical participants, visual cues increase memory specificity over and above emotion. Further research is needed to investigate ways in which memory specificity can be increased and the use of imagery may be a promising avenue.     

The influence of reporting mode on children's cued personal memories

The Autobiographical Memory Test (AMT) is widely used in research contexts to measure the extent to which participants (children or adults) report specific or general memories in response to cue words. Recalling fewer specific and more general memories (overgeneral memory) has been shown to be linked to depression in adults, but findings for youth, in particular, are mixed. Different versions of the AMT may be one contributing factor, yet this issue has received little research attention. The current study investigated the influence of reporting mode (written vs. spoken) on the specificity, length, and content of memories provided by 8- to 10-year-old children (N?=?48). No significant differences were found in the number of specific responses given in the written and spoken modes. On the other hand, the spoken mode elicited longer and more detailed memories, although most content differences were eliminated when memory length was controlled. These findings suggest that different reporting modes can influence the nature of the memories reported, but the absolute differences are relatively small.     

Trauma and autobiographical memory specificity in depressed inpatients

Research on autobiographical memory has shown that clinical depression is associated with a difficulty in retrieving specific autobiographical memories in response to cue words. This study examined the relation between lack of autobiographical memory specificity and self-reported trauma in a group of depressed adults (N = 23). In addition to the Autobiographical Memory Test (AMT; Williams & Broadbent, 1986) participants completed a number of questionnaires assessing the presence of traumatic experiences in the past, level of depression and neuroticism. The number of specific responses was not related to depression severity, but was significantly associated with the presence and severity of reported physical abuse. Participants who had been victim of physical abuse were less specific than participants who had not been confronted with such physical adversities. The results are discussed in the context of a functional hypothesis about the developmental relations between memory specificity, trauma and depression.     

Unraveling the linguistic nature of specific autobiographical memories using a computerized classification algorithm

In the present study, we explored the linguistic nature of specific memories generated with the Autobiographical Memory Test (AMT) by developing a computerized classifier that distinguishes between specific and nonspecific memories. The AMT is regarded as one of the most important assessment tools to study memory dysfunctions (e.g., difficulty recalling the specific details of memories) in psychopathology. In Study 1, we utilized the Japanese corpus data of 12,400 cue-recalled memories tagged with observer-rated specificity. We extracted linguistic features of particular relevance to memory specificity, such as past tense, negation, and adverbial words and phrases pertaining to time and location. On the basis of these features, a support vector machine (SVM) was trained to classify the memories into specific and nonspecific categories, which achieved an area under the curve (AUC) of .92 in a performance test. In Study 2, the trained SVM was tested in terms of its robustness in classifying novel memories (n?= 8,478) that were retrieved in response to cue words that were different from those used in Study 1. The SVM showed an AUC of .89 in classifying the new memories. In Study 3, we extended the binary SVM to a five-class classification of the AMT, which achieved 64%–65% classification accuracy, against the chance level (20%) in the performance tests. Our data suggest that memory specificity can be identified with a relatively small number of words, capturing the universal linguistic features of memory specificity across memories in diverse contents.     

创伤青少年自传体记忆具体性减少：情感调节还是执行控制受损

结合经典的自传体记忆测验(AMT)和反转-自传体记忆测验(AMT-R)探究创伤青少年自传体记忆具体性减少的原因。首先通过创伤事件终身经历问卷-学生版(LIET-S)和创伤后症状自评量表(CROPS)对630名青少年进行筛查, 然后结合访谈, 并采用儿童事件冲击量表-修订版(CRIES)测量创伤程度, 最终选取有创伤后症状的青少年63名, 分为高创伤组和低创伤组, 另无创伤经历的青少年30名作为控制组。三组被试均参加AMT和AMT-R实验。结果发现, 在AMT中, 创伤青少年表现出自传体记忆具体性减少的特点, 且创伤后症状越严重, 具体性减少越明显; 在AMT-R中, 创伤青少年提取的具体记忆数量与控制组无显著差异。结果表明, 创伤青少年自传体记忆具体性的减少是情感调节的结果。     

Assessing the specificity of autobiographical memory in individuals at a trait-based vulnerability to bipolar disorder using a sentence completion task

Overgeneral autobiographical memory recall has been associated with the diagnosis of bipolar disorder, but the role of overgenerality in the vulnerability to bipolar disorder remains under-researched. While a previous study suggested that high-risk individuals for bipolar disorder recall emotionally negative memories in specific detail, this is in contrast to memory recall patterns noted in bipolar samples. The Autobiographical Memory Test (AMT) used in previous non-clinical studies has also been criticised for not being sensitive to overgenerality due to its repetition of specificity instructions and practice trials. The traditional AMT format may allow some individuals to override their trait-based tendencies to be overgeneral. The current study used a sentence completion task to assess memory specificity in groups of students at a low and high trait-based vulnerability for bipolar disorder. In contrast to previous research, high-risk individuals recalled fewer specific positive memories and greater numbers of overgeneral negative memories than low-risk individuals. These results support the notion that the vulnerability for bipolar disorder might be associated with similar recall biases as demonstrated in bipolar samples, and that the AMT might not be sufficiently sensitive to detect overgenerality in non-clinical groups. The implications of these findings and directions for future research are discussed.     

Specificity of episodic and semantic aspects of autobiographical memory in relation to symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

Two studies examined the relationship between the ability to access specific autobiographical material in memory and presence/symptoms of posttraumatic stress. In Study 1, a sample of refugees with a diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) completed the Autobiographical Memory Test (AMT) in which they had to generate specific episodic autobiographical memories in response to emotion-related cue words. Results showed that reduced specificity of memories on the AMT was associated with an increased frequency of trauma-related flashbacks but with reduced use of effortful avoidance to deal with trauma-related intrusions in the day-to-day. Study 2 examined retrieval of semantic autobiographical information from previous lifetime periods in groups of cancer survivors with posttraumatic stress and healthy controls. The cancer survivors were able to generate fewer specific semantic details about the personal past compared to the controls. The more symptomatic survivors showed the greatest memory impairment. The data from both studies are discussed in terms of compromised access to specific autobiographical material in distressed trauma survivors reflecting a process of affect regulation.     

Specificity in autobiographical memory narratives correlates with performance on the Autobiographical Memory Test and prospectively predicts depressive symptoms

Reduced autobiographical memory specificity (AMS) is an important cognitive marker in depression that is typically measured with the Autobiographical Memory Test (AMT; Williams & Broadbent, 1986). The AMT is widely used, but the over-reliance on a single methodology for assessing AMS is a limitation in the field. The current study investigated memory narratives as an alternative measure of AMS in an undergraduate student sample selected for being high or low on a measure of depressive symptoms (N=55). We employed a multi-method design to compare narrative- and AMT-based measures of AMS. Participants generated personally significant self-defining memory narratives, and also completed two versions of the AMT (with and without instructions to retrieve specific memories). Greater AMS in self-defining memory narratives correlated with greater AMS in performance on both versions of the AMT in the full sample, and the patterns of relationships between the different AMS measures were generally similar in low and high dysphoric participants. Furthermore, AMS in self-defining memory narratives was prospectively associated with depressive symptom levels. Specifically, greater AMS in self-defining memory narratives predicted fewer depressive symptoms at a 10-week follow-up over and above baseline symptom levels. Implications for future research and clinical applications are discussed.     

Autobiographical Memory Specificity in Patients with Tinnitus Versus Patients with Depression and Normal Controls

Several studies show that patients with depression and post-traumatic stress disorder respond with fewer specific autobiographical memories in a cued memory task (i.e. the autobiographical memory test; AMT) compared to healthy controls. One previous study found this phenomenon among tinnitus patients as well (Andersson, Ingerholt, & Jansson, 2003). The aim of this study was to replicate the previous study with an additional control group of depressed patients and memory errors as measured with the AMT as an additional outcome. We included 20 normal hearing tinnitus patients, 20 healthy controls and 20 persons diagnosed with clinical depression. The AMT was administered together with self-report measures of depression, anxiety and tinnitus distress. Both the tinnitus and depression groups differed from the healthy control group in that they reported fewer specific autobiographical memories. There were, however, differences between the tinnitus and depression groups in terms of the errors made on the AMT. The depression group had more overgeneral memories than the normal control group, whereas the tinnitus group did not differ from the control group on this memory error. The tinnitus group had more semantic associations and non-memories than the other two groups, suggesting that executive functioning may play a role for the tinnitus group when completing the AMT. Clinical and theoretical implications of the findings are discussed.     

Is remembering less specifically part of an avoidant coping style? Associations between memory specificity,avoidant coping,and stress

Individuals higher on avoidant coping may remember fewer specific autobiographical memories and more nonspecific memories on the Autobiographical Memory Test (AMT) in order to protect themselves from the painful emotions accompanying some specific memories. Habitually remembering this way (overgeneral memory) may be a risk factor for depression. In Studies 1 and 2 (nondepressed samples), avoidant coping was associated with more specific memories and fewer overgeneral memories, at odds with the functional avoidance view. In Study 3 (depressed sample), there were no significant relationships between AMT indices and avoidant coping. Results are discussed in light of ironic process theory.     

Mental time travel after trauma: The specificity and temporal distribution of autobiographical memories and future-directed thoughts

The present study investigated the relationship between trauma exposure and specificity and temporal distribution of autobiographical memories and future-directed thoughts. A group of sexual assault victims were compared with women without previous trauma exposure in relation to specificity of autobiographical memories, as measured by the Autobiographical Memory Task (AMT) and specificity of future-directed thoughts as measured by the Future Cueing Task (FCT). The temporal distribution of future-directed thoughts and autobiographical memories was studied by asking the participants to estimate when each memory reported on the AMT had occurred and when each future event reported on the FCT would occur. The results showed no difference between the trauma group and the controls on specificity of autobiographical memories and future-directed thoughts. In line with a review of Moore and Zoellner (2007), PTSD symptoms as measured by the Impact of Event Scale (IES) correlated negatively with specificity. Furthermore, we observed no difference in temporal distribution of future-directed thoughts or autobiographical memories between trauma exposed participants and controls.     

The role of executive function in autobiographical memory retrieval: does the type of cue word matter?

ABSTRACT

Autobiographical memories are memories for personally experienced life events. Previous research has revealed individual differences in the ability to recall specific memories that happened at a particular time and place. Some studies suggest such differences can be attributed to the varying capacity of executive function. However, little is known regarding which specific executive function skills predict autobiographical memory specificity. Participants were asked to complete multiple measures of executive function as well as an autobiographical memory task in which they were asked to recall a specific personal memory connected to concrete and abstract cue words. We hypothesised that executive function will be positively related to autobiographical memory specificity and that this relation will be moderated by the cue word type. The results revealed that individuals with higher executive function skills, specifically, higher inhibitory control and cognitive flexibility, recalled significantly more specific memories than those with lower executive function skills; however, no significant interaction between executive function ability and cue word type was found.     

Modifying memory for a museum tour in older adults: Reactivation-related updating that enhances and distorts memory is reduced in ageing

Memory reactivation, the activation of a latent memory trace when we are reminded of a past experience, strengthens memory but can also contribute to distortions if new information present during reactivation is integrated with existing memory. In a previous study in young adults we found that the quality of memory reactivation, manipulated using the principle of encoding specificity and indexed by recollection ratings, modulated subsequent true and false memories for events experienced during a museum tour. Here in this study, we examined age-related changes in the quality of memory reactivation on subsequent memory. Memories of museum stops in young and older adults were reactivated and then immediately followed by the presentation of a novel lure photo from an alternate tour version (i.e., reactivation plus new information). There was an increase in subsequent true memories for reactivated targets and for subsequent false memories for lures that followed reactivated targets, when compared to baseline target and lure photos. However, the influence of reactivation on subsequent memories was reduced in older adults. These data reveal that ageing alters reactivation-related updating processes that allow memories to be strengthened and updated with new information, consequently reducing memory distortions in older adults compared to young adults.     

Social support from friends predicts changes in memory specificity following a stressful life event

ABSTRACT

Exposure to negative life stress has been associated with difficulty retrieving memories for specific autobiographical events, with important consequences for the emergence of emotional disorders. We examined whether social support can protect against the effects of negative events on memory specificity. University students (N?=?143) were assigned to groups based on whether or not they experienced a negative stressor, operationalised as whether or not their recent exam performance was in line with their expectations. After receiving their exam results (T1), and one month later (T2), participants completed measures of memory specificity, their attitudes towards themselves and the occurrence of other stress-related events. Participants also completed a general measure of perceived social support from friends, family, and significant others, and an equivalent measure for social support related to performance. For participants who experienced an exam-related stressor, reduced performance-specific social support from friends was associated with reduced memory specificity at T2, even when accounting for T1 memory specificity, individual differences in attitudes towards self, the experience of additional stressors, and gender. No such relation was present for participants who did not experience a stressor. These findings provide new understanding of the influence of social variables on autobiographical memory specificity.     

Cue self-relevance affects autobiographical memory specificity in individuals with a history of major depression

Previously depressed and never-depressed individuals identified personal characteristics (self-guides) defining their ideal, ought, and feared selves. One week later they completed the autobiographical memory test (AMT). For each participant the number of AMT cues that reflected self-guide content was determined to produce an index of AMT cue self-relevance. Individuals who had never been depressed showed no significant relationship between cue self-relevance and specificity. In contrast, in previously depressed participants there was a highly significant negative correlation between cue self-relevance and specificity--the greater the number of AMT cues that reflected self-guide content, the fewer specific memories participants recalled. It is suggested that in individuals with a history of depression, cues reflecting self-guide content are more likely to prompt a shift to processing of information within the long-term self (Conway, Singer, & Tagini, 2004), increasing the likelihood that self-related semantic information will be provided in response to cues on the autobiographical memory test.     

Memory specificity as a risk factor for suicidality in non-affective psychosis: The ability to recall specific autobiographical memories is related to greater suicidality

A difficulty in recalling specific autobiographical memories has been noted as a risk factor for suicidal behaviour. However, the relationship between memory specificity and suicide has not previously been investigated in those with non-affective psychosis. It was predicted that in this group, more specific memory recall would be associated with an increased risk of suicide. This is because such specific memories are likely to be associated with greater levels of distress and negative affect than less specific memories. This prediction contradicts the prevailing belief that lower memory specificity is associated with greater suicidality. Sixty participants with schizophrenia spectrum disorders were recruited, 40 of whom reported past suicide attempts. Analyses showed suicide attempters recalled a greater proportion of specific memories, whilst controlling for trait anxiety and depressive symptoms. These results supported the main hypothesis, and suggest non-specific memory may have adaptive qualities in individuals with psychosis.     

Autobiographical memory specificity in adults reporting repressed,recovered, or continuous memories of childhood sexual abuse

Some psychotherapists believe that adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse (CSA) are characterised by memory deficits for their childhood. Using the Autobiographical Memory Test (AMT), we asked nonabused control participants and participants who reported either continuous, recovered, or repressed memories of CSA to retrieve a specific personal memory in response to either positive or negative cue words from either childhood or adolescence/adulthood. The results indicated that participants who believed they harboured repressed memories of abuse tended to exhibit the greatest difficulty retrieving specific memories from their childhood. Neither posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) nor major depression was related to diminished memory specificity.     

Associations between components of rumination and autobiographical memory specificity as measured by a Minimal Instructions Autobiographical Memory Test

Clinical studies have shown that rumination functions as a mediator between overgeneral memory—the tendency to retrieve autobiographical memories in a non-specific format—and depression. Recently, rumination has been dismantled into two distinct subcomponents: reflection, which is more adaptive, and brooding, which is more maladaptive. In the present study we examined the differential relationships of these two rumination subcomponents with autobiographical memory specificity and their mediational role for the relationship between reduced memory specificity and depression in a non-clinical sample. In addition, we investigated the usefulness of a “minimal instructions” version of the Autobiographical Memory Test (AMT) to measure memory specificity in non-clinical populations. Results indicated that the use of minimal instructions can increase the AMT's sensitivity to detect reduced autobiographical memory specificity in non-clinical individuals. Further it was found that brooding, and not reflection, is significantly associated with reduced autobiographical memory specificity and functions as a mediator between reduced memory specificity and depression.     

An “alternating instructions” version of the Autobiographical Memory Test for assessing autobiographical memory specificity in non-clinical populations

There is limited research regarding how executive processes contribute to key cognitive deficits in depression, particularly impoverished retrieval of autobiographical memory. This study tested a novel version of the Autobiographical Memory Test (AMT), the “Alternating Instructions” AMT (AMT-AI), to determine how participants could flexibly retrieve specific and categoric autobiographical memories. The AMT-AI consisted of a standard AMT (AMT-S), a categoric version of the AMT (AMT-R), and a section of alternating instructions (AI) in which the rules required the participant to alternate between retrieval of categoric and specific memories. A total of 49 university students completed the AMT-AI, and self-report measures of depressive symptomatology and ruminative thinking. Results showed that the mean proportion of specific memories recalled on the AMT-AI was significantly lower than on the AMT-S. Also, reduced memory specificity on the AMT-AI, but not the AMT-S, was significantly negatively correlated with increased scores on measures of depressive symptomatology and ruminative thinking. Collectively the data suggested that the AMT-AI, relative to the traditional AMT, may be more sensitive to memory specificity in non-clinical populations. Future research is warranted to further determine the psychometric properties and utility of the AMT-AI.     

Operant conditioning of autobiographical memory retrieval

Functional avoidance is considered as one of the key mechanisms underlying overgeneral autobiographical memory (OGM). According to this view OGM is regarded as a learned cognitive avoidance strategy, based on principles of operant conditioning; i.e., individuals learn to avoid the emotionally painful consequences associated with the retrieval of specific negative memories. The aim of the present study was to test one of the basic assumptions of the functional avoidance account, namely that autobiographical memory retrieval can be brought under operant control. Here 41 students were instructed to retrieve personal memories in response to 60 emotional cue words. Depending on the condition, they were punished with an aversive sound for the retrieval of specific or nonspecific memories in an operant conditioning procedure. Analyzes showed that the course of memory specificity significantly differed between conditions. After the procedure participants punished for nonspecific memories retrieved significantly more specific memories compared to participants punished for specific memories. However, whereas memory specificity significantly increased in participants punished for specific memories, it did not significantly decrease in participants punished for nonspecific memories. Thus, while our findings indicate that autobiographical memory retrieval can be brought under operant control, they do not support a functional avoidance view on OGM.