AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL MEMORY RESPONSE TO A NEGATIVE MOOD IN THOSE WITH/WITHOUT A HISTORY OF DEPRESSION

Abstract

Abstract: In this study, we investigated the accessibility of overgeneral autobiographical memories (OGM) and specific memories by observing the effects of induced negative mood state on the characteristics of memory recall in those with and without a previous history of a depression. The Sentence Completion for Events from the Past Test (SCEPT) was used to assess OGM. The effects of previous history of depression (without history or with previous history of depression) and self-reported mood (pre or post negative mood induction) on autobiographical recall was shown in a mixed factor design. A significant interaction was observed between time and group in their effects on general memories (F(1, 32) = 5.06, p = .032) and specific memory (F(1, 32) = 4.88, p = .034), such that the previous history of depression group experienced a larger increase in general memory and a larger reduction in specific memory from pre to post manipulation.Key wo rds: Overgeneral Autobiographica l Memory (OGM), negative mood induction, Sentence Completion Test, previou s history of depressionIntroductionIn this study we investigated the effects of induced negative mood state in those with and without a previous history of depression, studying the characteristics of autobiographical memory. The term autobiographical memory refers to an individual's record of experiences from his/her personal life in the form of an internal life story, which is a construction of past experiences (Williams et al., 2007). Overgeneral autobiographical memory (OGM) focuses on cognitive processes involved in memory retrieval and reduced memory specificity (Raes et al., 2007). OGM represents a cognitive process which focuses on how information is encoded, altered, combined and stored in memory rather than focusing on shifts in attention (van Vreeswijk & de Wilde, 2004). Research into OGM suggests that the lack of specificity in autobiographical memory remains once the severity of depressive symptoms declines, which indicates that OGM is not a mood state dependent ph enom enon but a trait-like marker (Williams, 1996). It is interesting to note that other cognitive functioning such as biases in recalling negative events and self-evaluation seem to be mood state dependent and return to normal with remission from depression (Persons & Miranda, 1992; Segal & Ingram, 1994). OGM phenomenon has been investigated predominantly in those already showing signs of depression compared to primed studies, which predominantly utilize non-depressed individuals. Also, less focus has been on OGM in individuals with a previous episode of depression compared to individuals showing current depressive symptoms.One theoretically important mood state phenomenon that contributes to understanding mood effects on memory recall is mood congruent memory. Mood congruence is where a certain mood will tend to enhance processing of memories or stimuli that corr r d to t h e con cur r en t mood state (Teasdale & Fogarty, 1979). Mood congruent recall suggests that a person experiencing a transitory negative mood state can enter into a vicious cycle, where their negative mood state can prime negative memories, which in turn triggers a negative affective state (Wenzlaff, Wegner, & Roper, 1988). The specific connection between overgeneral memory and depression seems to be due to a dysfunctional recall strategy (Dalgleish et al., 2007), present in those with depression (Williams et al., 2007) and in people with past history of depression (Haddad, Hamer, & Williams, 2014), where memory fails to progress past general recall due to the effect of negative mood cueing negative emotional events. Rumination and memory load are also thought to contribute to overgeneral memory in depression (Dalgleish et al., 2007; Williams, 2006) by taking up scarce processing resources (Conway & Pleydell-Pearce, 2000) and therefore stopping memory search at a lower level and preventing access to eventspecific memories. …