Reconstructing autobiographical memories for the present: Objectification, anchoring, generational effect and social contexts

Abstract

The present study examines the representational content of voluntary and involuntary autobiographical memories (objectification), as well as the anchorings according to age, sex and time contexts. 1.200 individuals of both sexes and different ages participated in this study and were asked to write down three memory events and three “oblivion” events in a personal, family and social framework and to note the date that these events took place. The results highlight the significance of social contexts in the reconstruction of the autobiographical past, which are space, time and different affiliation groups. The content of autobiographical memory is constructed through everyday relationships between the individuals and the members of the groups they belong to. Family, school, friends, the workspace, the socio-historical and political framework of their era provide the individuals with identity references. Both the quality and the time reference of the events depend on the age of the participants.