The focus of the current study was to determine if there was an association between features of the social environment and both oral and silent reminiscence frequency. Fifty community-dwelling older adults (aged 58-84; 60% female) participated in the study, which utilized a questionnaire. Current opportunities to reminisce were significantly associated with both oral and silent reminiscence frequency; early life experience with reminiscing was significantly associated with total (oral plus silent) reminiscence frequency (p<.05, one-tailed). Perceived enjoyment, appropriateness, and usefulness of reminiscing were also measured. Silent reminiscence frequency was significantly higher than oral reminiscence frequency for the total sample (p<.001). Gender differences were also significant for oral reminiscence frequency (p<.02), combined reminiscence frequency (p<.05) and usefulness (p<.04) with males scoring higher than females in each case. Results suggest that researchers and practitioners should take into account features of social interaction as well as demographic characteristics before initiating reminiscence research and therapy. / Master of Science

Dual-process models of recognition memory propose that recognition memory can be supported by either a general sense of familiarity or the recollection of the encoding context. One source of evidence supporting dual-process models comes from event-related potential (ERP) studies of recognition memory, which have identified distinct patterns of neural activity associated with familiarity and recollection (the mid frontal and left parietal old/new effects, respectively). In this thesis, dual-process accounts of recognition memory were investigated in a series of ERP studies using three categories of stimulus: previously unknown faces, famous faces, and names. For previously unknown faces, familiarity was associated with activity over posterior scalp electrodes while recollection was associated with topographically dissociable activity over anterior electrodes. These dissociable patterns of activity support dual-process models. However, the typical pattern of old/new effects was only observed for stimuli associated with pre-existing representations (i.e., names and famous faces), suggesting that the presence/absence of pre-existing representations may determine the particular retrieval processes that support recognition memory. Furthermore, recollection was associated with two different patterns of activity (anterior and left parietal effects), suggesting that recollection is not a homogenous process. Dual-process theories may represent an important starting point for investigating recognition memory, but neither familiarity nor recollection appear to be functionally homogenous processes when theorizing is constrained by the analysis of scalp recorded electrophysiological activity.

La mémoire épisodique correspond à la reviviscence consciente d'expériences personnelles ancrées dans un contexte spécifique. Ce travail de thèse porte sur l'étude des processus cognitifs et des mécanismes neuronaux du rappel épisodique chez l'Homme. Les souvenirs rappelés par les odeurs sont plus détaillés et plus émotionnels que ceux évoqués par d'autres modalités sensorielles. Ces spécificités expliquent pourquoi nous nous intéressons à l'évocation des souvenirs par des odeurs. Tout d'abord, une tâche comportementale novatrice est développée pour permettre l'étude contrôlée de la mémoire d'épisodes complexes constitués d'odeurs non familières (Quoi), localisées à des emplacements distincts (Où), d'un environnement visuel donné (Quel contexte). A l'aide de cette tâche, nous montrons que, lorsque les dimensions d'un épisode sont étroitement liées, la perception de l'odeur permet le rappel de l'ensemble du souvenir. Le rappel épisodique est essentiellement fondé sur des processus de recollection, la familiarité n'étant pas suffisante pour récupérer l'ensemble du souvenir. De plus, les odeurs associées à une émotion, quelle que soit leur valence, facilitent le rappel épisodique correct. Fonctionnellement, la mémoire épisodique est sous-tendue par un large réseau neuronal, constitué de régions typiquement impliquées dans la mémoire de laboratoire et la mémoire autobiographique. Les souvenirs corrects sont associés à un réseau neuronal différent des souvenirs incorrects, de la perception de l'odeur à la ré-expérience du souvenir. Des analyses de modularité indiquent que les interactions fonctionnelles au sein du réseau de la mémoire épisodique dépendent également de l'exactitude du souvenir. L'ensemble de ces travaux suggère que le rappel épisodique est un processus dynamique complexe, initié dès la perception des odeurs, et interdépendant d'autres systèmes de mémoire tels que les mémoires perceptive et sémantique / Episodic memory is the memory that permits the conscious re-experience of specific personal events and associated with a specific context. This doctoral research aims at investigating the cognitive processes and the neural bases of episodic retrieval in humans. Odor-evoked memories are known to be more detailed and more emotional than memories triggered by other sensorial cues. These specificities explain why we studied odor-evoked memories. First, a novel behavioral task has been designed to study in a controlled way the memory of complex episodes comprising unfamiliar odors (What), localized spatially (Where), within a visual context (Which context). From this approach, we suggest that when the binding between the episodes’ dimensions is strong, the odor perception evokes the whole episodic memory. The episodic retrieval is mainly based on recollection processes, the feeling of knowing being insufficient to induce complete memory recovery. Moreover, emotion carried by odors, whatever its valence, promote accurate episodic retrieval. Functionally, episodic memory is underpinned by a distributed network, constituted of regions typically found in laboratory and autobiographical memory approaches. Accurate memories are associated with a specific neural network, from odor perception to memory re-experience. Modularity analyses show that neural interactions within this network also depend on memory accuracy. Altogether, results of this research suggest that episodic retrieval is a dynamic and complex process, triggered by odors perception, closely linked to other memory systems such as perceptual and semantic memories

L’objectif de ce travail de thèse était d’évaluer l’état des processus de récupération en mémoire dans la maladie d’Alzheimer afin de développer des programmes de prise en charge cognitive novateurs. Les deux premières études ont porté sur la caractérisation de ces processus à travers l’évaluation des performances de patients avec une maladie d’Alzheimer à des tâches de reconnaissance mnésique. Les deux études suivantes se sont intéressées au développement de programmes d’intervention cognitive ayant pour objectif de réduire les troubles cognitifs et leur retentissement, l’un en améliorant les processus cognitifs altérés à partir d’un entraînement cognitif appliquant la répétition-lag procédure et l’autre, en sollicitant les processus cognitifs préservés à partir d’un apprentissage par des techniques de réhabilitation cognitive, à recourir à l’utilisation d’aides externes. Les résultats ont mis en évidence une détérioration sélective des processus de reconnaissance chez les patients à un stade léger de la maladie ; la recollection serait particulièrement altérée alors que la familiarité resterait préservée. De plus, le déficit des capacités de reconnaissance de la source serait lié à l’altération des processus stratégiques de reconnaissance de la source, les processus associatifs resteraient préservés. Ensuite, le programme d’entraînement cognitif expérimental s’est révélé efficace, des gains cognitifs ont été objectivés à des tâches cognitives de transfert. De même, le programme de réhabilitation cognitive par le biais d’un apprentissage combinant les techniques de la récupération espacée et de l’apprentissage sans erreur a permis de réduire l’impact des troubles cognitifs dans la vie quotidienne / The main objective of this thesis was to evaluate retrieval memory processes in Alzheimer’s disease in order to develop innovative cognitive interventions. The first two studies focused on the characterization of these processes through performance evaluation of patients with Alzheimer’s disease in recognition memory tasks. The next two studies became interested in development of cognitive intervention programs aimed at reducing cognitive impairment and their impact. One tries to improve impaired cognitive processes from a cognitive training using the repetition-lag procedure and the other one uses different cognitive rehabilitation techniques that involve preserved cognitive processes to learn to resort to the use of external aids. The results showed a selective deficit in recognition processes in patients with a mild stage of Alzheimer’s disease, recollection would be particularly affected as familiarity remains preserved. In addition, source recognition deficit could be explained by a specific alteration of source recognition strategic processes whereas associative processes should remain preserved. Secondly, the experimental cognitive training program was effective, cognitive gains were objectified in transfer tasks. Similarly, the cognitive rehabilitation program using spaced retrieval technique and errorless learning has reduced the impact of cognitive impairment in everyday life

[pt] O presente trabalho pretende investigar a rememoração e reminiscência, tal como apresentada por Lacan em seu Seminário livro 23, O sinthoma. Os dois termos estão situados em dois momentos do ensino de Jacques Lacan como um binômio. Entre esses dois registros, busca-se localizar como se dá o trabalho com a memória. Mais especificamente, o que pode ser rememorado e o que não entra nesse encadeamento e fica como ponto vazio que não se deixa apreender pelas cadeias de sentido. Embora a rememoração e a reminiscência nunca tenham sido dispostas como um par na teorização freudiana, entendemos ser possível diferenciar ambas as dimensões em sua obra. Deste modo, propomos construir um solo entre Freud e Lacan. A ideia é que o delineamento deste terreno contribua para que possamos nos aproximar do que está em jogo na contraposição destes dois termos. Ao final nos serviremos do livro A obscena senhora D, de autoria da autora paulistana Hilda Hilst, pois entendemos ser um texto prenhe de reminiscências. / [en] The present work intends to investigate remembrance and reminiscence, terms located in two moments of Jacques Lacan s teaching, as a binomial. Between these two terms, we seek to locate how memory works, what can be remembered and what does not enter this articulation and remains as an empty point that cannot be captured by the chains of meaning. Although Freud did not consider recollection and reminiscence as pair, we believe it is possible to differentiate both dimensions in his work. In this way, we propose to build a ground between Freud and Lacan. The idea is that the delineation of this ground helps us to get closer to what is envolved in the opposition of these two terms. In the end, we will use the book A obscena Senhora D, written by Hilda Hilst, as we understand it to be a text full of reminiscences.

Thesis (DPhil)--University of Stellenbosch, 2004. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: It is a general assumption in psychology that past social relationships and experiences influence present social behaviour. With attachment theory and current social-cognitive theory as conceptual basis, the present study focused on the association between past experiences with significant others and the current processing of interpersonal information. By means of a 2x3x4 experimental design the study investigated the influence of chronic accessibility and subliminal priming (of significant other representations) on the accuracy and speed of processing scripted interpersonal information. One hundred and thirty seven university students took part in two sessions no more than two weeks apart. In session one they completed the Attachment Style Questionnaire (ASQ; Feeny, Noller & Hanrahan, 1994), and provided the names of positive and negative significant others. According to a median split of the Confidence Scale of the ASQ, they were assigned to a chronic positive or a chronic negative group, assuming that the information based on predominantly positive or negative experiences with positive or negative significant others will be chronically more accessible. In session two, in an individual computer task, they were subliminally primed (33 ms) with a control word or the name of the positive or negative significant other to increase the accessibility of the appropriate memory structures. They were then asked to read a positive, negative, mixed or ambiguous script of an interpersonal event and complete a memory test of 36 interpersonal statements (nine positive, nine negative, nine ambiguous and nine filler statements). The accuracy and response time for every statement was recorded, and the response times of accurate responses for positive and negative scripts were included in the main analysis. Separate univariate analyses of the differences between positive and negative priming per polarity of chronic group and script supported the priming hypothesis. The average response time of the chronic negative group was fastest when they received a negative prime (p = .039), and the positive group was fastest when they received a positive prime (p = .000). The results of a two-way analysis of variance for chronic group and script showed a highly significant interaction effect between chronic group and script (p = .000). When the primes were congruent to the scripts, the chronic groups were significantly faster in recognising statements from a congruent script. The results supported the conjunctive model of priming. The implications of these findings for the understanding of the cognitive structures and processes involved in processing interpersonal information are discussed, with specific reference to relational schemas and attachment working models. Possible directions for future research as well as the application of the results are also described. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Dit is ‘n algemene aanname in die sielkunde dat sosiale verhoudinge en ervarings uit die verlede ‘n invloed het op huidige sosiale gedrag. Vanuit die bindingsteorie en die huidige sosiaal-kognitiewe teorie as konseptuele uitgangspunt, fokus die huidige studie op die assosiasie tussen ervaringe met betekenisvolle persone in die verlede en die huidige prosessering van interpersoonlike inligting. Met behulp van ‘n 2x3x4 eksperimentele ontwerp is ondersoek ingestel na die invloed van chroniese toeganklikheid en subliminale opwekking (van geheuevoorstellings van betekenisvolle ander) op die akkuraatheid en spoed waarmee interpersoonlike tekste verwerk word. Eenhonderd-sewe-en-dertig universiteitstudente het deelgeneem aan twee sessies wat nie meer as twee weke na mekaar plaasgevind het nie. Tydens sessie een het die deelnemers die Attachment Style Questionnaire (ASQ; Feeny, Noller & Hanrahan, 1994) voltooi en die name van positiewe en negatiewe betekenisvolle persone voorsien. Op grond van die mediaan-verdeling van die Selfvertroue Skaal van die ASQ is die deelnemers toegewys aan ’n chronies positiewe of chronies negatiewe groep, met die veronderstelling dat inligting gebaseer op oorwegend positiewe of negatiewe ervarings met positiewe of negatiewe betekenisvolle ander deurlopend meer toegankilk sal wees. Tydens sessie twee, wat ’n individuele rekenaartaak behels het, is ’n subliminale stimulus (33 ms) van ’n kontrole-woord, of die naam van ’n positiewe of negatiewe betekenisvolle ander aan hulle aangebied om die toeganklikheid van die toepaslike geheue-strukture verder te verhoog. Daarna is hulle versoek om ‘n positiewe, negatiewe, gemengde of dubbelsinnige teks van ’n interpersoonlike gebeurtenis te lees en ’n geheuetoets van 36 stellings te voltooi wat bestaan het uit nege positiewe, nege negatiewe, nege dubbelsinnige en nege neutrale stellings. Die akkuraatheid en reaksiespoed van elke stelling is gemeet en die reaksietyd van die akkurate response op stellings uit positiewe en negatiewe tekste is in die primêre ontleding ingesluit. Die resultate van onafhanklike eenveranderlike ontledings van die verskille tussen positiewe en negatiewe opwekking per polariteit van chroniese groep en teks, het die hipotese van opwekking ondersteun. Die gemiddelde responstyd van die chroniese negatiewe groep was die vinnigste wanneer hulle die negatiewe stimulus ontvang het (p = .039) en die van die positiewe groep was die vinnigste wanneer hulle die positiewe stimulus ontvang het (p = .000). Die resultate van ’n tweerigting variansieontleding van chroniese groep en teks het ‘n beduidende interaksie tussen chroniese groep en teks aangedui (p = .000). Wanneer die opwekkingstimuli kongruent met die tekste was, was die chroniese groepe betekenisvol vinniger in die herkenning van stellings van die kongruente teks. Die resultate ondersteun ’n konjunktiewe model van opwekking. Die implikasies van die bevindinge vir die verstaan van die kognitiewe strukture en prosesse betrokke by die verwerking van interpersoonlike inligting word bespreek, met spesifieke verwysing na verhoudingskemas en die gebruiksmodelle in bindingsteorie. Riglyne vir toekomstige navorsing op die gebied word verskaf, en die implikasies vir die praktiese toepassing van die resultate word bespreek.

The purpose of the present study was to explore the relationship between intergroup attitudes and the remembering activity of two culturally different groups of subjects. The theoretical basis of this study is the transactional model as outlined by Meacham (1977). According to this model, the attitudes, memories and the sociocultural background of the rememberer constantly and simultaneously alter one another in a reciprocal fashion. Different sociocultural experiences lead to different attitudes and memories, and any changes brought about in attitudes result in changes in memories and vice versa. To examine this system of relationship, two groups of American and Iranian subjects were recruited. Both groups consisted of 28 university students who were either upper classmen or graduate students. Subjects' initial attitudes toward three sets of attitudinal objects were assessed using a set of 37 Semantic Differential Scales. The three sets of attitudinal objects consisted of peoples and governments of three countries of Iran, Sweden, and the U.S. A week after the inital assessment, the subjects were engaged in a remembering activity which consisted of two tasks. The first task was a free recall task. The subjects were asked to recall, to the best of their abilities, the story of the American hostages in Iran. Following the free recall activity the subjects were given a set of 16 statements, which collectively described the entire hostage event in a concise manner. Each of these statements had four different components which the subjects were asked to mark if they would recognize them. The four components were action, agent, time, and explanation. Immediately after the recall and recognition tasks, the attitudes of the subjects toward the same attitudinal objects were assessed again. The data did not provide any support for the transactional model, but nevertheless revealed some significant differences between the two groups of subjects in regard to some of the attitudinal objects.

Information systems research tends to ignore individual differences in users. This laboratory experiment sought to illuminate contributions of decision-makers' cognitive processes to decision outcome as reflected in four hypothesis sets: the impact of imagery preference and presentation format upon (HI) recall accuracy and upon hemispheric activation during (H2) encoding and (H3) recall, and (H4) to examine the relationship between hemispheric activation differences and accuracy differences. Point-value (specific values) and intraset-pattern (relationships between values) recall were considered. Thirty MBA students, grouped by imagery preference (cognitive style) as favoring verbal (textual) or visual (graphical) information presentation, performed computer-based recall tasks using tabular and graphical formats in a repeated measures design. Hemispheric activation (cognitive process) was assessed using ratios of EEG activity in six frequency bands captured from six pairs of homologous electrode sites during encoding and recall.

Les modèles à deux processus de la mémoire de reconnaissance postulent l’intervention de deux mécanismes indépendants, la familiarité et la récollection, là où les modèles à un processus envisagent un continuum. Aujourd’hui, les théories à deux processus sont les plus largement acceptées grâce à la découverte de deux composantes électrophysiologiques qui reflèteraient les processus de familiarité et de récollection, respectivement la FN400 et la LPC. Cependant, l’indépendance de ces deux composantes est sujette à débat. L’objectif principal de cette thèse a donc été d’examiner la nature de ces processus et de leurs corrélats neuronaux afin de tester leur indépendance. Pour ce faire, nous avons d’étudier l’influence des informations perceptives (études 1 et 2), sémantiques (études 1, 2, 3 et 4), associatives (études 1 et 2), ainsi que la répétition à l’encodage (étude 3), et l’effet de l’âge (étude 4), sur les processus de récollection, de familiarité et leurs corrélats respectifs en couplant les données ROC et EEG. Les résultats vont dans le sens d’une conception de la familiarité reflétée par la FN400 comme étant multi-déterminée et permettent de préciser le caractère conditionné et hiérarchique dans le traitement des informations : perceptives, sémantiques puis associatives. Nos données indiquent en revanche que la récollection et la LPC serait principalement influencée par des informations sémantiques et associatives et ensuite, dans un second temps, par des informations perceptives. Dans leur ensemble, ces résultats sont en faveur du modèle de redondance, suggérant que la familiarité et la récollection dépendent d’un processus commun, multi-déterminé et dynamique. / Dual-process models of recognition postulate that two independent processes sustained recognition (familiarity and recollection) while single process models consider the familiarity and the recollection as the ends of a continuum reflecting a common process. For now, dual-process models are the most accepted, due to electrophysiological evidences of two distinct components, FN400 and LPC, which have been linked to familiarity and recollection, respectively. However, a debate is growing concerning the independence of these components. The main objective of this thesis was to investigate familiarity, recollection and their neural correlates’ nature. To this end, we studied the influence of perceptual (study 1 and 2), semantic (all study), associative information (study 1 and 2), the repetition (study 3) and the age-related effect (study 4) on familiarity, recollection and corresponding neural correlates using ROC and EEG data. Results support the view that familiarity, as reflected by FN400, is multi-determined but allow to specify the conditioned the hierarchy in the information’s processing: perceptual then semantic and then associative. Recollection, as reflected by the LPC, would also be multi-determined, but was mainly influenced by semantic and associative information and then, in a secondary way, by perceptual information. Taken together, present data support the redundancy model suggesting that familiarity and recollection depend on a common, multi-determined and dynamic process.

Two experiments were conducted to investigate the impact of poser and perceiver gender on the Happiness/Anger Superiority effect and the Female Advantage in facial expression recognition. Happy, neutral, and angry facial expressions were presented on male and female faces under Continuous Flash Suppression (CFS). Participants of both genders indicated when the presented faces broke through the suppression. In the second experiment, angry and happy expressions were reduced to 50% intensity. At full intensity, there was no difference in the reaction time for female neutral and angry faces, but male faces showed a difference in detection between all expressions. Across experiments, male faces were detected later than female faces for all facial expressions. Happiness was generally detected faster than anger, except when on female faces at 50% intensity. No main effect for perceiver gender emerged. It was concluded that happiness is superior to anger in CFS, and that poser gender affects facial expression recognition. / by Sophia Peaco. / Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2013. / Includes bibliography. / Mode of access: World Wide Web. / System requirements: Adobe Reader.