Charlesworth, LA, Allen, RJ orcid.org/0000-0002-1887-3016, Havelka, J orcid.org/0000-0002-7486-2135 et al. (1 more author) (2016) Who am I? Autobiographical retrieval improves access to self-concepts. Memory, 24 (8). pp. 1033-1041. ISSN 0965-8211
Abstract
It is considered that an individual's current self-concept plays a crucial role in guiding the retrieval of autobiographical memory. Using a novel fluency paradigm, the present research examined whether or not the reverse is also true, that is, does memory retrieval influence the description of the conceptual self? Specifically, this study examined the effect of prior autobiographical reverie on the subsequent retrieval of stored self-concepts. Participants wrote a description of a personally relevant memory or a control topic (of no relevance to the self), following which they had 60 seconds to generate as many self-defining statements as possible, each beginning with I am. Participants engaging in autobiographical retrieval generated significantly more statements than those in the control condition, suggesting that autobiographical retrieval increased access to self-concepts. Type of statement also varied according to group. Participants in the autobiographical memory condition were more likely to conceptualise themselves in relation to their psychological traits, and this was replicated in a second experiment conducted online. Findings support the idea that self and episodic memory are highly related constructs, and are discussed in relation to implications for individuals with autobiographical memory deficits.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2015 Taylor & Francis. This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Memory on 14th August 2015, available online: http://wwww.tandfonline.com/10.1080/09658211.2015.1063667. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. |
Keywords: | self; autobiographical memory; identity; self-concept; episodic memory |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Medicine and Health (Leeds) > School of Psychology (Leeds) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 18 Sep 2015 09:57 |
Last Modified: | 03 Nov 2016 05:05 |
Published Version: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09658211.2015.1063667 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Taylor & Francis |
Identification Number: | 10.1080/09658211.2015.1063667 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:89907 |