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Objective: This study aimed to test predictions made by the self-memory system (SMS) model (Conway & Pleydell-Pearce, 2000), extensions of Williams et al.’s (2007) “capture and rumination” (CaR) mechanism (Debeer, Hermans, & Raes, 2009) and control theories of rumination (Martin & Tesser, 1996, 2006) in a non-clinical sample to further understand the processes underlying overgeneral memory (OGM). It was hypothesised that (i) ruminating on unresolved goals, compared to thinking about resolved goals, would increase OGM, in participants reporting high levels of trait brooding and (ii) that this effect would be greater following goal-cues that are derived from goal cues rated as (a) more important compared to those rated as less important; (b) more progress-discrepant compared to those rated as less progress-discrepant; (c) more relevant to unresolved goals compared to those that are rated as less relevant to unresolved goals. Method: A between-subjects factor of condition (resolved versus unresolved goal-focus induction) and a within-subjects factor of time (pre- and post-manipulation Minimal Instruction Autobiographical Memory Test [MI-AMT; Debeer et al., 2009]) design was utilised with 75 undergraduate and three masters psychology students (86.3 % female [n = 65]; age, M = 20.2 years, range = 18-43, SD = 4.9) from the University of Exeter. The MI-AMT was used to measure autobiographical memory (AM) specificity before and following a manipulation whereby participants were randomly assigned to either a control condition in which participants focussed on a resolved goal or an experimental condition which was designed to induce rumination about an unresolved (i.e., self-discrepant) goal. MI-AMT cues were adjectives relating to nomothetic goal-statements. Results: Hierarchical multiple regression analyses found neither an overall effect of condition nor an interaction between condition and brooding on AM specificity. Thus, induced rumination over unresolved goals did not lead to higher levels of OGM than induced focus on resolved goals amongst individuals high in trait brooding. Multilevel hierarchical regression found that the extent to which people high on brooding were less specific in the unresolved condition did not depend on the importance or progress-discrepancy ratings of the goal-statements from which the MI-AMT cues were developed, nor on the relevance of the goal-cues to the concern identified in the goal cueing task. Goal-cue relevance ratings showed a significant main effect on AM specificity qualified by an interaction with condition whereby participants reported decreasingly specific AMs in response to cues related to the concern after the resolved goal manipulation. Conclusion: These null findings suggest that rumination over unresolved goals may not increase OGM amongst non-clinical samples. A replication of this study should utilise state rumination checks to ensure that the goal cueing task successfully differentially induced state rumination between conditions. Further exploration of the role of reflection might elucidate which qualities of rumination are positively associated with OGM but not present in rumination about unresolved goals. Given that Williams et al.’s CaR mechanism was constructed to understand OGM in clinical depression, a replication of this study using a clinical sample may be a useful next step in testing predictions made by this theory.

Two decades of research suggest that a non-specific style of autobiographical memory retrieval–known as overgeneral memory–may be a cognitive style that increases depression vulnerability. Recent theorizing and empirical evidence suggest the mechanisms underlying overgeneral memory include rumination and avoidance. This study provided a preliminary investigation of the effectiveness of an expressive writing intervention, which has been found to reduce rumination and avoidance, in reducing overgeneral memory, with the ultimate goal of preventing future depressive symptoms among non-depressed college students. Two hundred and seven non-depressed college students completed the expressive writing intervention, in addition to a one-month and six month follow-up assessment. Participants were randomized one of three writing conditions: traditional expressive writing, specific expressive writing, or control writing. Participants in the traditional and specific expressive writing conditions were instructed to write about their deepest thoughts and feelings about an emotional event; the specific expressive writing condition contained the additional instruction that participants describe the events in a vivid and detailed manner. Participants in the control condition were instructed to write about a neutral topic (i.e., time management). All groups wrote for 20 minutes on three consecutive days. Study results showed that compared to participants in the control writing condition, participants in the traditional and specific expressive writing conditions demonstrated significantly greater autobiographical memory specificity at the six-month follow-up, but not at the one-month follow-up. Furthermore, the observed increase in autobiographical memory specificity for the expressive writing conditions could not be attributed to change in depressive symptoms over the same time interval. Results revealed that the effect of the traditional expressive writing intervention on increased autobiographical memory specificity was partially mediated by a reduction in avoidance assessed at the one-month follow-up. The hypothesis that rumination would partially mediate the effect of the expressive writing intervention on increased autobiographical memory specificity was not supported. Despite preliminary evidence that an expressive writing intervention compared to a control wiring condition is effective in increasing autobiographical memory specificity over a six-month period for initially non-depressed college students, it remains to be seen if increased autobiographical memory specificity decreases vulnerability to future depressive symptoms. / text

Research Doctorate - Doctor of Philosophy (Clinical Psychology) / Overgeneral autobiographical memory is thought to be a clinically meaningful phenomenon which is related to affect regulation, problem solving ability, and treatment outcome in clinical populations (see J. M. G. Williams et al., 2007, for review). Individuals with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) are thought to be particularly prone to developing an overgeneral style of memory due to their temperamental difficulties in controlling affect (J. M. G. Williams, 1996). However, research in this population has so far yielded inconsistent findings. In a series of three studies, this thesis addresses the question whether overgeneral memory is associated with BPD, as well as exploring the relationship between memory specificity, affect regulation, problem solving ability, and response to treatment in this population. Findings indicate that individuals with BPD display reduced autobiographical specificity relative to controls, however, this appears to be a reflection of differences in cognitive ability as IQ and education mediated the association between specificity and diagnosis. Reduced specificity was not associated with Borderline traits in a non-clinical sample. Results failed to confirm the hypothesis that autobiographical memory specificity would be related to affect regulation in individuals with BPD, although there was some indication that memory specificity is associated with reduced rates of deliberate self-harm. Specificity was related to problem solving performance in individuals with BPD, although this relationship did not extend to self-reported problem solving ability. Memory specificity also appeared to change significantly over the course of treatment in a year-long Dialectical Behavior Therapy program, however, there was little indication that change in memory specificity was associated with the observed improvement in symptomatology, affect regulation or problem solving ability. Lastly, an experimental study with university students found no relationship between memory specificity and affect dysregulation, although low specific students reported greater reductions in positive affect following a negative event than individuals with a specific style of autobiographical recall. The assimilation model is considered as a framework for conceptualising these results.

Childhood exposure to familial violence increases risk for adult pathology, namely posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression. Primary PTSD symptoms of hyperarousal and avoidance are implicated in overgeneral memory (OGM) theory in prior research. Individuals with trauma history tend to report OGMs, or non-specific autobiographical memories, perhaps to avoid unpleasant arousal elicited by recalling specific events. OGM, PTSD, depression, and arousal were assessed in adults with and without familial violence history. Arousal was measured via galvanic skin response (GSR) during an autobiographical memory task (AMT), requiring memory recall in response to emotionally-valenced cue words. Familial violence history was linked to higher incidence of PTSD symptoms. Childhood psychological violence was predictive of adult PTSD. Rates of depression, OGM, and arousal did not significantly vary by violence history. Significant gender differences were found relating to type of violence exposure and adult functioning. Research limitations, clinical implications, and future research suggestions are discussed.

Evidence from self-reports and laboratory studies suggests that recall of nontrauma autobiographical memories may be disturbed in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), but investigations in everyday life are sparse. This study investigated unintentional nontrauma and trauma memories in trauma survivors with and without PTSD (N = 52), who kept an autobiographical memory diary for a week. We investigated whether unintentional nontrauma memories show an overgeneral memory bias and further memory abnormalities in people with PTSD, and whether unintentional trauma memories show distinct features. Compared to the no-PTSD group, the PTSD group recorded fewer nontrauma memories, which were more overgeneral, more often from before the trauma or related to the trauma, were perceived as distant, and led to greater dwelling. Trauma memories were more vivid, recurrent, and present and led to greater suppression and dwelling. Within the PTSD group, the same features distinguished trauma and nontrauma memories. Results are discussed regarding theories of autobiographical memory and PTSD.