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

The Return of Repression? Evidence From Cognitive Psychology

The controversy over alleged repressed and recovered memories of childhood sexual abuse (CSA) was among the most contentious ever to embroil psychology and psychiatry. Adapting paradigms from cognitive psychology, my research group tested hypotheses pertinent to repressed memory and false memory interpretations of recovered memories. We tested adults who: (1) report recovering memories of CSA after not having thought about their abuse for years; (2) report never having forgotten their CSA; (3) believe they harbor "repressed" memories of CSA; and (4) deny having been sexually abused. We tested hypotheses about mechanisms that might figure in the inability to recall memories of one's abuse and those that might render one susceptible to developing false memories of abuse. The purpose of this article is to summarize this work. Finally, I draw on the work of Lionel Penrose to speculate about why the popularity of the concept of repressed memories of trauma-or its synonym, dissociative amnesia for trauma-may be rising today.

Understanding intergenerational transmission of early maladaptive schemas from a memory perspective: Moderating role of overgeneral memory on adverse experiences

BACKGROUND

Previous studies demonstrated that early maladaptive schemas (EMSs) are transmitted from mothers to children through adverse childhood experiences, such as maltreatment and unfulfilled core needs. The traumatic memory literature demonstrated that people with a history of trauma recall their traumatic and/or other negative experiences as categories of events-a phenomenon called overgeneral autobiographical memory (OGM)-to avoid the accompanying intense negative feelings. In the long run, OGM originating from an affect-regulation process after childhood traumatic experiences can facilitate the development of EMSs in children.

OBJECTIVE

This study expands the previous literature by studying whether OGM facilitates the transmission of EMSs by strengthening maladaptive thinking patterns after traumatic experiences.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTINGS

A total of 120 mothers and late adolescents participated in this study. The mothers filled out the forms online through a link sent to their e-mail addresses, and the adolescents completed the forms online through a link posted on social media.

METHOD

Late adolescents completed the Autobiographical Memory Recall Task, Young Schema Questionnaire-Short Form-3 (YSQ-SF3), Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, and Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). Mothers filled out the YSQ-SF3 and BDI.

RESULTS

The results confirmed that adverse childhood experiences significantly mediated the relationship between mothers' and children's disconnection and rejection schemas. Furthermore, this relationship was stronger, especially for children with a higher tendency of overgeneral retrieval of negative experience (β = 0.26 (0.10), 95% CI [0.09, 0.49]).

CONCLUSIONS

The present study provides evidence that OGM facilitates the transmission of early maladaptive schemas.

Sleep Paralysis, a Medical Condition with a Diverse Cultural Interpretation

Sleep paralysis (SP) is a state associated with the inability to move that occurs when an individual is about sleeping or just waking. It could occur in healthy individuals as isolated SP. It has also been linked with other underlying psychiatry, familial, and sleep disorders. Statistics show that 8% of the general population suffers from SP. Although this value has been described inaccurately, there is no standard definition or etiology to diagnose SP. There are several speculations describing SP in the current literature. These descriptions can be viewed as either cultural-based or medical-based. The disparity among cultural or ethnic groups and medical professionals in identifying SP has led to the various approaches to managing the condition. This review aims to medically describe SP and how it is interpreted and managed among various cultural groups.

Meta-Analysis of the Association Between Autobiographical Memory Specificity and Exposure to Trauma

Cognitive models of emotional disorders suggest that reduced autobiographical memory specificity that results from exposure to traumatic events may play an important role in the aetiology and maintenance of these disorders. However, there has yet to be a comprehensive meta-analysis of the association between trauma exposure and memory specificity, and the role of posttraumatic stress symptoms on this association. We searched PsycINFO and MEDLINE databases and extracted data from studies regarding the mean number or proportion of specific memories that participants with and without trauma exposure recalled on the Autobiographical Memory Test. We also extracted data on differences between groups in terms of posttraumatic stress and depressive symptoms, along with data on trauma timing and participants' ages at the time of assessment. The effect size of memory specificity between participants with and without exposure to trauma was large, d = 0.77, and differed significantly from zero, p < .001. In metaregression, trauma timing was a significant predictor of the heterogeneity in trauma-exposure specificity effect sizes, but posttraumatic stress and depressive symptoms were not. Compromised memory specificity represents an important cognitive consequence of trauma exposure that might have an important influence on risk for, and maintenance of, subsequent emotional pathologies.

Trauma-related self-defining memories and future goals in Dissociative Identity Disorder

This study examined the content of self-defining autobiographical memories in different identities in patients with Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) and comparison groups of patients with PTSD, healthy controls, and DID simulators. Consistent with the DID trauma model, analyses of objective ratings showed that DID patients in trauma identities retrieved more negative and trauma-related self-defining memories than DID patients in avoidant identities. Inconsistent with the DID trauma model, DID patients' self-rated trauma-relatedness of self-defining memories and future life goals did not differ between trauma identities and trauma avoidant identities. That is, the DID patients did not seem to be "shut off" from their trauma while in their avoidant identity. Furthermore, DID patients in both identities reported a higher proportion of avoidance goals compared to PTSD patients, with the latter group scoring comparably to healthy controls. The simulators behaved according to the instructions to respond differently in each identity (i.e., to report memories and goals consistent with the identity tested). The discrepant task behavior by DID patients and simulators indicated that DID patients did not seem to intentionally produce the hypothesized differences in performance between identities. In conclusion, for patients with DID (i.e., in both identities) and patients with PTSD, trauma played a central role in the retrieval of self-defining memories and in the formulation of life goals.

Autobiographical memory specificity in child sexual abuse victims

The present study examined the specificity of autobiographical memory in adolescents and adults with versus without child sexual abuse (CSA) histories. Eighty-five participants, approximately half of whom per age group had experienced CSA, were tested on the autobiographical memory interview. Individual difference measures, including those for trauma-related psychopathology, were also administered. Findings revealed developmental differences in the relation between autobiographical memory specificity and CSA. Even with depression statistically controlled, reduced memory specificity in CSA victims relative to controls was observed among adolescents but not among adults. A higher number of posttraumatic stress disorder criteria met predicted more specific childhood memories in participants who reported CSA as their most traumatic life event. These findings contribute to the scientific understanding of childhood trauma and autobiographical memory functioning and underscore the importance of considering the role of age and degree of traumatization within the study of autobiographical memory.

Consistency of reporting sexual and physical abuse during psychological treatment of personality disorder: an explorative study

The objective of this study was to assess the prevalence of decreasing, consistent and increasing reports of sexual and physical abuse after 12 months of long-term psychological treatment of personality disorders, to investigate demographic and clinical characteristics predictive of inconsistency of reporting abuse, and to explore whether autobiographical memory may account for this inconsistency. In 229 clinical participants with an SCID II diagnosed personality disorder, 180 (78.6%) reported the same instances of invasive sexual and/or physical abuse on a trauma questionnaire (SPAQ) at baseline and follow-up, 25 (10.9%) decreased and 24 (10.4%) increased their abuse reports. Consistency of reporting abuse did not differ between schema-focused therapy, clarification-oriented psychotherapy and treatment-as-usual. Current depressive episode (SCID-I) and decreased capacity to produce specific negative memories on the Autobiographical Memory Test were characteristic of decreasing abuse reporters, while increasing abuse reporters showed higher levels of Cluster A personality pathology (in particular schizotypal traits) on the Assessment of DSM-IV Personality Disorders (ADP-IV). These results suggest that even in treatment procedures directed at exploring someone's personal past with abuse-related imagery consistency of reporting abuse is quite stable. However, certain clinical characteristics may make some persons more likely to change their trauma reports. Moreover, reduced negative memory specificity may represent an avoidant strategy associated with no longer reporting instances of abuse.

The mechanisms underlying overgeneral autobiographical memory: an evaluative review of evidence for the CaR-FA-X model

Overgeneral autobiographical memory (OGM) has been found to be an important cognitive phenomenon with respect to depression and trauma-related psychopathology (e.g., posttraumatic stress disorder), and researchers have been interested in better understanding the factors that contribute to this proposed vulnerability factor. The most prominent model of mechanisms underlying OGM to date is Williams et al.'s (2007) CaR-FA-X model. This model proposes that three processes influence OGM: capture and rumination, functional avoidance, and impaired executive control. The author reviews the current state of support for the CaR-FA-X model by evaluating 38 studies that have examined OGM and one or more mechanisms of the model. Collectively, these studies reveal robust support for associations between OGM and both rumination and impaired executive control. OGM also appears to be a cognitive avoidance strategy, and there is evidence that avoiding the retrieval of specific memories reduces distress after an aversive event, at least in the short term. Important issues that have been left unresolved are highlighted, including the nature of the capture phenomenon, the role of trauma in functional avoidance, and the developmental nature of functional avoidance. Recommendations for future research that will enhance understanding of the factors that contribute to OGM are suggested.

Autobiographical memory specificity among people with recovered memories of childhood sexual abuse

Individuals who report to have recovered memories of childhood sexual abuse (CSA) almost by definition believe that these memories were previously inaccessible for them. We examined whether poor autobiographical memory specificity for all kinds of events (i.e., events not necessarily related to CSA) may underlie such impressions of amnesia. Thus, we examined whether people who report recovered memories of CSA (n=44) would exhibit more difficulty retrieving specific autobiographical memories compared to people who never forgot their abuse experiences (continuous memory group; n=42) and people without a history of abuse (controls; n=26). The standard Autobiographical Memory Test (AMT) was administered to these 3 groups along with measures of depression and posttraumatic stress disorder symptomatology. Controls were significantly better at retrieving specific autobiographical memories relative to individuals with continuous and recovered CSA memories, who did not differ from each other. Thus, reduced autobiographical memory specificity was not particularly pronounced in people with recovered memories of CSA. Poor autobiographical memory specificity is unlikely to explain the impression of amnesia reported by this group.

Overgeneral memory for public and autobiographical events in depression and schizophrenia

INTRODUCTION

Memory for public and autobiographical events was investigated in people diagnosed with depression, schizophrenia, and a group of healthy controls. The aim was to determine whether the overgeneral memory effect emerged in clinical conditions other than depression and in memory domains other than autobiographical.

METHODS

36 participants, 12 in each group, were administered four measures comprising the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, the Autobiographical Memory Test (AMT), the Autobiographical Memory Interview (AMI), and a Public Events Memory Test; the latter developed by the authors and based on the AMT.

RESULTS

A pattern of overgeneral autobiographical memory retrieval was found in both clinical groups. A similar pattern in retrieval of public events was also found in people diagnosed with depression and schizophrenia, indicating that overgeneral memory was characteristic of neither clinical condition nor was it associated with a particular memory domain.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings suggest that overgeneral memory retrieval may represent a fundamental flaw in memory that arises when resources are limited. These findings are discussed in light of current theories of overgeneral memory retrieval.

Applying Biological Data in the Forensic and Policy Arenas

Of the biological measures in the field of traumatic stress studies, the script-driven imagery paradigm has yielded the most consistent data. Approximately, two-thirds of individuals with a diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) exhibit heightened psychophysiologic reactivity while listening to audiotaped descriptions of their traumatic autobiographical memories. Nevertheless, these findings do not necessarily indicate the presence of PTSD or even that the memories are genuine. For example, people reporting (presumably) false memories of having been abducted by space aliens similarly exhibit heightened reactivity, even though they do not suffer from PTSD. To enhance the validity of diagnostic decision making in the forensic and policy arenas, we can use the methods of historians, specifically, consulting archival records to verify trauma histories and supplement biological data.