Narration and Vividness as Measures of Event-Specificity in Autobiographical Memory

Bibliographic Data

ID11274149
AuthorsKristin L Nelson (0000-0002-8524-1035, McDaniel College, corresponding author), Damian J Moskovitz (University of California, Berkeley), Hans Steiner (Stanford University)
Year2008
Volume45
Issue2
Pages195-209
Publication date2008-03-04
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueDiscourse Processes (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0163-853X • E-ISSN: 1532-6950
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/01638530701792891
OpenAlexW1974376022
LanguageEN
Citations received5
References cited45

The event specificity of autobiographical memories refers to the degree to which retold memories include specific details about a unique personal experience from a variety of representational systems supported by different brain areas. This article proposes 2 text measures as indicators of event specificity: (a) a measure of temporal sequence in narration (CitationLabov & Waletzky, 1967; CitationNelson & Horowitz, 2001) and (b) referential activity (RA; CitationBucci, 1997). Temporal sequence in narration measures the degree to which a personal memory includes clauses spoken in the same order as the speaker's representation of events. RA is text vividness, or the extent to which words clearly refer to a speaker's detailed cognitive, sensory, and emotional experiences. This article hypothesizes that temporal sequences and RA are both signs of speaker activation of event-specific memories and should be positively correlated. Using 55 transcripts from high school students interviewed about their "most stressful time," this article analyzes the first 250 words of each memory for narrative temporal sequences and for RA. Number of temporal sequences and RA scores were positively associated (Spearman's r = .69, p < .001), consistent with the hypothesis. Notes aFemale speaker, age 17; 259 words; number of temporal sequences = 0 (20th percentile), average RA = −0.16 (9th percentile). bFemale speaker, age 16; 266 words; number of temporal sequences = 16 (100th percentile), average RA = 0.31 (99th percentile)

Autobiographical memory · Cognition · Cognitive psychology · Event (particle physics · Linguistics · Narrative · Percentile · Recall · Representation (politics · Identity, Memory, and Therapy · Language Development and Disorders · Mathematics · Memory Processes and Influences · Psychology

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