Memory as a cognitive representation of post-traumatic growth

Background and objectives: Previous studies on traumatic memory have primarily focused on the correlation between traumatic symptoms and negative memories, often utilizing the directed forgetting paradigm. Different from previous research, this study aimed to examine the correlation of post-traumatic growth (PTG) and positive memories, with the objective to explore the directed forgetting effect of positive material and its relationship with PTG.

Design: A 2 (PTG level: high vs. low)?×?2 (instructions: To-Be-Forgotten vs. To-Be-Remembered)?×?3 (word valence: positive vs. neutral vs. trauma related) mixed-factorial-designed experiment was applied.

Methods: Participants were 46 senior high-school students who had survived in the Sichuan earthquake in 2008. Participants were divided into two groups based on PTG: high (n?=?24) and low (n?=?22). Both groups were presented, and asked to recall, three word categories (positive, trauma-related, and neutral) following the directed forgetting paradigm.

Results: A mixed-design factorial ANOVA yielded a significant interaction effect of word valence and PTG group, with the high-PTG group recalling more positive words than the low-PTG group.

Conclusions: This was the first study to identify a key cognitive process of PTG by integrating the directed forgetting paradigm into an investigation of PTG.