Reduced autobiographical memory specificity and affect regulation
The effect of specificity of autobiographical memory (AM) retrieval on the affective impact of an emotional event was examined. In Study 1 (N = 90) the impact of a negative and positive experience was compared between student participants who habitually retrieve autobiographical memories (AMs) in a...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Journal article |
| Language: | English |
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2006
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| _version_ | 1797101454765326336 |
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| author | Raes, F Hermans, D Williams, J Eelen, P |
| author_facet | Raes, F Hermans, D Williams, J Eelen, P |
| author_sort | Raes, F |
| collection | OXFORD |
| description | The effect of specificity of autobiographical memory (AM) retrieval on the affective impact of an emotional event was examined. In Study 1 (N = 90) the impact of a negative and positive experience was compared between student participants who habitually retrieve autobiographical memories (AMs) in a specific way and participants who generally retrieve less specific memories. In Study 2 (N = 48) the effect of an experimentally induced (specific vs. overgeneral) retrieval style on the impact of a negative experience was studied in student participants who habitually retrieve less specific memories. Study 1 replicated the finding of Raes, Hermans, de Decker, Eelen, and Williams (2003) that a negative event leads to less subjective distress in low-specific participants as compared with high-specific participants. However, both groups did not differ in their affective reaction to a positive event. Important, reduced memory specificity was associated with "repressive coping" providing further evidence for the idea that reduced memory specificity is used as an avoidant or repressive-defensive mechanism to regulate negative affect (Williams, 1996). In Study 2, participants who were induced to retrieve memories in an overgeneral way experienced more distress following a negative event as compared with participants who were induced to retrieve memories in a specific way. Results are discussed in the context of recent findings concerning AM specificity and emotion regulation (Philippot, Schaefer, and Herbette, 2003). Directions for further research are suggested. © 2006 Psychology Press Ltd. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-07T05:52:11Z |
| format | Journal article |
| id | oxford-uuid:e9451580-07ac-46df-9de9-08ea1253ada4 |
| institution | University of Oxford |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-07T05:52:11Z |
| publishDate | 2006 |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | oxford-uuid:e9451580-07ac-46df-9de9-08ea1253ada42022-03-27T10:53:00ZReduced autobiographical memory specificity and affect regulationJournal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:e9451580-07ac-46df-9de9-08ea1253ada4EnglishSymplectic Elements at Oxford2006Raes, FHermans, DWilliams, JEelen, PThe effect of specificity of autobiographical memory (AM) retrieval on the affective impact of an emotional event was examined. In Study 1 (N = 90) the impact of a negative and positive experience was compared between student participants who habitually retrieve autobiographical memories (AMs) in a specific way and participants who generally retrieve less specific memories. In Study 2 (N = 48) the effect of an experimentally induced (specific vs. overgeneral) retrieval style on the impact of a negative experience was studied in student participants who habitually retrieve less specific memories. Study 1 replicated the finding of Raes, Hermans, de Decker, Eelen, and Williams (2003) that a negative event leads to less subjective distress in low-specific participants as compared with high-specific participants. However, both groups did not differ in their affective reaction to a positive event. Important, reduced memory specificity was associated with "repressive coping" providing further evidence for the idea that reduced memory specificity is used as an avoidant or repressive-defensive mechanism to regulate negative affect (Williams, 1996). In Study 2, participants who were induced to retrieve memories in an overgeneral way experienced more distress following a negative event as compared with participants who were induced to retrieve memories in a specific way. Results are discussed in the context of recent findings concerning AM specificity and emotion regulation (Philippot, Schaefer, and Herbette, 2003). Directions for further research are suggested. © 2006 Psychology Press Ltd. |
| spellingShingle | Raes, F Hermans, D Williams, J Eelen, P Reduced autobiographical memory specificity and affect regulation |
| title | Reduced autobiographical memory specificity and affect regulation |
| title_full | Reduced autobiographical memory specificity and affect regulation |
| title_fullStr | Reduced autobiographical memory specificity and affect regulation |
| title_full_unstemmed | Reduced autobiographical memory specificity and affect regulation |
| title_short | Reduced autobiographical memory specificity and affect regulation |
| title_sort | reduced autobiographical memory specificity and affect regulation |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT raesf reducedautobiographicalmemoryspecificityandaffectregulation AT hermansd reducedautobiographicalmemoryspecificityandaffectregulation AT williamsj reducedautobiographicalmemoryspecificityandaffectregulation AT eelenp reducedautobiographicalmemoryspecificityandaffectregulation |