Autobiographical Memory Phenomenology and Content Mediate Attachment Style and Psychological Distress.

ABSTRACT: In two studies, the present research tested the phenomenology and content of autobiographical memory as distinct mediators between attachment avoidance and anxiety and depressive symptoms. In Study 1, participants (N = 454) completed measures of attachment and depressive symptoms in one session, and retrieved and rated two self-defining memories of romantic relationships in a separate session. In Study 2, participants (N = 534) were primed with attachment security, attachment insecurity, or a control prime and then retrieved and rated a self-defining relationship memory. Memory phenomenology, specifically memory coherence and emotional intensity, mediated the association between attachment avoidance and depressive symptoms, whereas the negative affective content of the memory mediated the

SUBMITTER: Sutin AR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2919846 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature