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El Haj M, Gallouj K, Moustafa AA, Potard C, Chapelet G. Negative effects of institutionalization on the sense of self in Alzheimer's Disease. Geriatr Nurs 2024; 59:1-6. [PMID: 38972259 DOI: 10.1016/j.gerinurse.2024.06.049] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2024] [Revised: 06/19/2024] [Accepted: 06/27/2024] [Indexed: 07/09/2024]
Abstract
In this longitudinal study, we investigated the effects of institutionalization on the sense-of-self in individuals with Alzheimer's Disease (AD). We recruited two groups of participants: one living in care facilities (i.e., institutionalized-group) and another group living in their own home (i.e., non-institutionalized-group). In the two groups, we assessed the "Who-am-I" task on which participants were invited to provide statements beginning with the phrase "I am" that they felt were essential in defining who they are. We assessed this task, in the two groups, at a baseline (approximately one-month before-institutionalization) and at a follow-up (approximately six months after institutionalization). We analyzed whether responses on the "Who-am-I" task reflected physical-, social-, or psychological-self. Unlike at the baseline, fewer statements describing physical-, social-, and psychological-self were observed in the institutionalization than in the non-institutionalized group at the follow up. These findings demonstrate negative effects of institutionalization on the sense of self in AD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohamad El Haj
- CHU Nantes, Clinical Gerontology Department, Bd Jacques Monod, F44093, Nantes, France.
| | - Karim Gallouj
- Unité de Gériatrie, Centre Hospitalier de Tourcoing, Tourcoing, France
| | - Ahmed A Moustafa
- School of Psychology, Faculty of Society and Design, Bond University, Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia; Department of Human Anatomy and Physiology, the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Catherine Potard
- Laboratoire de Psychologie des Pays de la Loire, LPPL EA 4638, SFR Confluences, UNIV Angers, Nantes Université, Maison de la recherche Germaine Tillion, 5 bis Boulevard Lavoisier
| | - Guillaume Chapelet
- CHU Nantes, Clinical Gerontology Department, Bd Jacques Monod, F44093, Nantes, France; Université de Nantes, Inserm, TENS, The Enteric Nervous System in Gut and Brain Diseases, IMAD, Nantes, France
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2
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Fritsch A, Voltzenlogel V, Cuervo-Lombard C. Exploring Characteristics of Self-Defining Memories in Older Adults. Int J Aging Hum Dev 2024; 98:159-181. [PMID: 37340672 DOI: 10.1177/00914150231183138] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/22/2023]
Abstract
The aim of this descriptive study was to investigate the Self-Defining Memories (SDMs) in a large sample of 181 older adults (65-90 years; mean age = 73.0 years) and to target the relationships between their different dimensions. The sampling method was nonprobabilistic, based on voluntary participation. Participants were asked to recall three SDMs. They also completed the Mini-Mental State Examination, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, and a Self-esteem Scale. Almost half of the SDMs were specific and more than a quarter were integrated. Specificity, tension, redemption, contamination sequences, and affective response varied regarding thematic content. Specificity was positively correlated to tension whereas autobiographical reasoning was positively correlated to redemption and negatively linked to emotional response and depression. This research highlighted that identity is constituted by the main types of events that make up a life: interpersonal relationships, life-threatening events, achievement, and leisure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alain Fritsch
- Psychology Department, University of Toulouse 2 Jean-Jaurès, Toulouse, France
- Centre d'Études et de Recherches en Psychopathologie et Psychologie de la Santé, University of Toulouse 2 Jean-Jaurès, Toulouse, France
| | - Virginie Voltzenlogel
- Psychology Department, University of Toulouse 2 Jean-Jaurès, Toulouse, France
- Centre d'Études et de Recherches en Psychopathologie et Psychologie de la Santé, University of Toulouse 2 Jean-Jaurès, Toulouse, France
| | - Christine Cuervo-Lombard
- Psychology Department, University of Toulouse 2 Jean-Jaurès, Toulouse, France
- Centre d'Études et de Recherches en Psychopathologie et Psychologie de la Santé, University of Toulouse 2 Jean-Jaurès, Toulouse, France
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3
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Chiorri C, Vannucci M. The Subjective Experience of Autobiographical Remembering: Conceptual and Methodological Advances and Challenges. J Intell 2024; 12:21. [PMID: 38392177 PMCID: PMC10890313 DOI: 10.3390/jintelligence12020021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2023] [Revised: 01/30/2024] [Accepted: 02/01/2024] [Indexed: 02/24/2024] Open
Abstract
The investigation of the phenomenology of autobiographical memories (i.e., how a memory is subjectively experienced and its meaning) has provided an important contribution to our understanding of autobiographical remembering. Over the last two decades, the study of phenomenology has received widespread scientific attention, and the field has undergone quite relevant conceptual and methodological changes. In the present work, we (1) review some basic and well-established research findings and methodological achievements; (2) discuss new theoretical and methodological challenges, with a special focus on the issue of the phenomenological experience of the retrieval process and its relationship with the phenomenology of the products of retrieval; and (3) propose an alternative way of conceptualizing and understanding it in the framework of experimental phenomenology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carlo Chiorri
- Department of Educational Sciences, University of Genoa, Corso A. Podestà 2, 16128 Genova, Italy
| | - Manila Vannucci
- Department of Neurofarba, Section of Psychology, University of Florence, Via San Salvi 12, Padiglione 26, 50135 Florence, Italy
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Elias H, Krackow E. Self-defining memories in non-justice and justice-involved individuals: possible relations to recidivism. Front Psychol 2023; 14:1266392. [PMID: 38187416 PMCID: PMC10768179 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1266392] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2023] [Accepted: 11/29/2023] [Indexed: 01/09/2024] Open
Abstract
Given the high rates of recidivism in adults, additional efforts in this area are warranted. In this paper, we provide a developmental perspective on self-defining memories, a specific type of autobiographical memory. We review the literature on self-defining memories in offenders and non-offenders high in psychopathic traits. Next, we present an empirically based conceptual framework regarding self-defining memories and recidivism, including a model of recidivism that integrates self-defining memories with identity, decision making, and behavioral processes related to recidivism. We then critique this model. We call for future research to test this model. Should results be fruitful, we discuss potential applications of this work.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Elisa Krackow
- Memory and the Law Lab, Department of Psychology, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV, United States
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González-Márquez C. Neuromodulation and memory: exploring ethical ramifications in memory modification treatment via implantable neurotechnologies. Front Psychol 2023; 14:1282634. [PMID: 38179489 PMCID: PMC10764565 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1282634] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2023] [Accepted: 11/17/2023] [Indexed: 01/06/2024] Open
Abstract
Invasive implantable neurotechnologies capable of simultaneously altering and recording neural activity are no longer the exclusive province of science fiction but a looming reality that will revolutionize medical practice. These advancements, particularly in their memory-altering capabilities, herald a vast array of opportunities for addressing the complex landscape of neurodegenerative and psychiatric conditions linked to memory impairments. However, the panoply of ethical implications arising from such a novel neurotechnology remains relatively unexplored by the neuroethics literature. This study examines and contrasts the potential ethical implications of memory modification treatment via implantable neurotechnologies. The study contends that undesired side effects resulting from memory modulation can lead to significant identity harms, disrupting the coherence of self-narratives and impinging on our authenticity. To evince the practical impact of this moral argument, the study conducts a practical ethical assessment of how employing implantable neurotechnologies to modulate memory may jeopardize (i) our moral responsiveness to events and core system of values and (ii) the emotional component associated with the altered memory. From a first-person standpoint, changes to the way we reasonably feel and react to past events and future intentions may be deemed ethically problematic as these profound changes can yield significant moral disruptions and negatively impact our personal lives and interpersonal relationships. In addition, the study discusses further ethical conundrums from a third-person perspective as these disruptions can inhibit social activism against structural injustices, thereby hindering societal progress. Thus, taking into account this societal dimension is paramount when evaluating the ethical permissibility of memory modification procedures.
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D'Argembeau A, Garcia Jimenez C. Effects of past and future autobiographical thinking on the working self-concept. Memory 2023:1-16. [PMID: 37823799 DOI: 10.1080/09658211.2023.2269324] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2023] [Accepted: 10/01/2023] [Indexed: 10/13/2023]
Abstract
While the role of autobiographical memory in self-representation is well established, the identity function of future thinking has received much less attention. Yet, most people commonly imagine future events that convey meaningful information about the person they wish or expect to become. In three experiments, we assessed the extent to which thinking about such self-defining future events influences the current content of self-representation (i.e., the working self-concept). Participants were asked to think about either a past or future self-defining event, or a control topic, before describing aspects of their identity in the form of "I am" statements (Experiments 1 and 3) or completing scales assessing self-related dimensions (Experiments 2 and 3). We found that thinking about a future self-defining event led participants to conceptualise themselves more in terms of their psychological traits, as did thinking about a past self-defining event. Furthermore, thinking about a future self-defining event increased the sense of present-future self-continuity, whereas thinking about a past self-defining event increased the sense of past-present self-continuity. These results suggest that self-representations are fuelled not only by autobiographical memories, but also by projections into the future.
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Martino ML, Lemmo D, Moylan J, Stevenson C, Bonalume L, Freda MF, Singer JA. The Role and Function of Autobiographical Memory Narratives during the Emotional Processing of Breast Cancer Treatment: An Empirically-Derived Memory Coding System. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2023; 20:1492. [PMID: 36674247 PMCID: PMC9859229 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph20021492] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2022] [Revised: 12/28/2022] [Accepted: 12/31/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Breast cancer (BC) in younger age is a critical and potentially traumatic experience that can interrupt the continuity of self-narrative during a crucial phase. In the Narrative Identity framework the translation of memories into autobiographical narratives is an internal and external process that plays a key role in meaning-making, social relationships and self-coherence. The aim of this study is to examine the role and function that autobiographical memory narratives (AMN) play in the process of adaptation to BC medical treatment. Seventeen BC women below 50 years received prompts to provide autobiographical memory narratives at four phases during their treatment (pre-hospitalization-T1-post-surgery-T2-chemo-radio therapy-T3-follow-up-T4). The Emotional Processing Scale (EPS) was also administered. In all, 68 AMN were collected. A three step procedure of data analysis was conducted. The first one, an empirically-derived memory coding manual to analyze key dimensions of AMN was developed: Agency; Emotional Regulation and Interpersonal Relations. Findings show a particular vulnerability in narrative identity faced by BC women during the shift from T1-T3. In the second one, an emotional coping profile for each woman focusing on the shift from T1-T3 was created. For the third step, these profiles were compared with the EPS scores. The final results suggest the capacity of the AMNs to differentiate the women's emotional adaptation over the course of the BC treatment. Despite the study's limitations, it supports the use of AMN as clinical device to construct a deeper knowledge and profiling trajectory of how women have internalized and elaborated past encounters with illness and help providers, as well as their prior experience of bodily/psychological health and integrity. This information adds to an understanding of their current efforts at recovery and adaptation. In this way we believe that the recollection of narrative memories, not only at the end of the cancer treatment but also during its process, could help the women to mend the broken continuity of their narrative self, as they seek to maintain a healthy balance of internal resources across their past, present, and projected future.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Daniela Lemmo
- Department of Humanities, Federico II University, 80133 Naples, Italy
| | - Joshua Moylan
- Department of Psychology, Connecticut College, New London, CT 06107, USA
| | - Caroline Stevenson
- Department of Psychology, Connecticut College, New London, CT 06107, USA
| | - Laura Bonalume
- Department of Clinical Psychology (U.O.S.D), Territorial Healthcare Company, 20873 Brianza, Italy
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Jiang XS, Wang Y, Singer JA. Self-defining memories and past academic stress in Chinese and American college students: a replication and extension of Wang and Singer (2021). Memory 2022; 31:346-356. [PMID: 36533313 DOI: 10.1080/09658211.2022.2154941] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
The current study replicated Wang and Singer's ([2021]. A cross-cultural study of self-defining memories in Chinese and American college students. Frontiers in Psychology, 11. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.622527) finding that Chinese college students from the People's Republic of China (PRC) recalled more self-defining memories (SDMs) focused on high school academic stress than their American counterparts. Seventy-eight American students from a private 4-year liberal arts college and 96 Chinese students from 13 different Chinese universities recalled two SDMs and rated them for affect, recall frequency, and importance. Once again, Chinese college students were more likely than American students to recall academic stress SDMs, but also expressed more redemptive themes in these memories. Overall, Chinese students rated their SDMs as more positive than the Americans, while the American sample tended to recall their negative memories more frequently. Contrasting the SDMs, American students self-reported higher levels of stress about their high school workload and less academic self-confidence. Regressions linked more negative affect in American SDMs to these work load and self-confidence concerns. Chinese students' SDM negative affect was most strongly predicted by perceived academic stress linked to parental and teachers' expectations. The discussion highlights the potential influence of Confucian values in the Chinese students' responses to past academic stress and their internalisation of academic stress memories in their narrative identity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiao Shan Jiang
- Department of Psychology, Connecticut College, New London, CT, USA
| | - Yuening Wang
- Department of Psychology, Connecticut College, New London, CT, USA
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Masumoto K, Sato K, Harada K, Yamamoto K, Shiozaki M. Emotional valence of self-defining memories in older adults: A longitudinal study. Conscious Cogn 2022; 106:103431. [PMID: 36335808 DOI: 10.1016/j.concog.2022.103431] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2022] [Revised: 09/14/2022] [Accepted: 10/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
The present study aimed to evaluate the pleasantness bias and fading affect bias in self-defining memories (SDMs) and to examine the relationship between their emotional valence of SDMs and cognitive function and serotonin transporter polymorphisms (5-HTTLPR) with a prospective longitudinal method. Ninety-two older adults recalled SDMs twice at an interval of one year (T1 and T2). The results showed a pleasantness bias and a fading affect bias in SDMs. The higher the working memory was, the higher the vividness of SDMs and the higher the concordance rate of SDMs between T1 and T2. Meanwhile, cognitive performance had no effect on the emotional valence of SDMs. Additionally, the repeatedly recalled SDMs in the S/S allele carriers of the 5-HTTLPR polymorphism changed with a lower negative valence at T2 than at T1. The 5-HTTLPR polymorphism may be a plasticity factor that predicts positive outcomes in positive situations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kouhei Masumoto
- Graduate School of Human Development and Environment, Kobe University, 3-11, Tsurukabuto, Nada-ku, Kobe, Hyogo 657-8501, Japan.
| | - Koji Sato
- Graduate School of Human Development and Environment, Kobe University, 3-11, Tsurukabuto, Nada-ku, Kobe, Hyogo 657-8501, Japan.
| | - Kazuhiro Harada
- Graduate School of Human Development and Environment, Kobe University, 3-11, Tsurukabuto, Nada-ku, Kobe, Hyogo 657-8501, Japan.
| | - Kenta Yamamoto
- Graduate School of Human Development and Environment, Kobe University, 3-11, Tsurukabuto, Nada-ku, Kobe, Hyogo 657-8501, Japan.
| | - Mariko Shiozaki
- Department of Applied Sociology, Kindai University, 3-4-1, Kowakae, Higashiosaka, Osaka 577-8502 Japan.
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Singer JA. “O’er the Hilltops is the Word of God” – Abraham Joshua Heschel’s Prototypical Self-defining Memory and its Relationship to his Vision of the Good Life. JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN PERSONALITY 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jrp.2022.104287] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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11
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Wright AC, Moody E, Browne J, Cather C. Self-defining memories among persons with mental health, substance use, cognitive, and physical health conditions: a systematic review. Memory 2022; 30:823-844. [DOI: 10.1080/09658211.2022.2042565] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Abigail C. Wright
- Center of Excellence for Psychosocial and Systemic Research, Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Erin Moody
- Center of Excellence for Psychosocial and Systemic Research, Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Julia Browne
- Center of Excellence for Psychosocial and Systemic Research, Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center, Durham VA Health Care System, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Corinne Cather
- Center of Excellence for Psychosocial and Systemic Research, Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
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