Minority Predoctoral Fellowship Program;Autobio. Memory

University Of Florida, Gainesville FL

Investigators

Linked publications & trials

Abstract

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Using autobiographical memories as a resource for maintaining close relationships may be related to successful late life functioning and thus warrants investigation. Research suggests that a primary function of autobiographical memory (AM) in everyday life is creating and maintaining social bonds. The ways that individuals use memory to serve social needs may vary with age. Specifically, older adults may be more likely to think and talk about the past for the purpose of maintaining intimacy in close relationships. This study employs quantitative, experimental, as well as qualitative methods to test this assertion: 162 young, middle-aged, and older men and women will be randomly assigned to recall either a personally meaningful autobiographical memory of an event shared with their spouse or to recall a narrative passage about a similar event. In order to test the link between memory sharing and intimacy, self-reported levels of relationship intimacy will be assessed both before and after memory sharing. Pilot data indicate that the intimacy measures selected are sensitive to changes in intimacy after a short-term manipulation. The qualitative features of the shared memories will also be analyzed to explore whether the way that older adults remember (e.g., more emotional) more effectively serves to maintain intimacy. Assertions about qualitative differences between young and older adults' memories in previous research have often relied on the use of narrative text (NT) materials; few direct comparisons between the two types of memory material exist. The design of the present research allows a direct comparison of these two types of memory materials. The research also contributes by including a middle-aged sample of adults.