An examination of self-defining memories in older adults
Research type
Research Study
Full title
An examination of self-defining memories, functional avoidance and metacognitive processes in depressed and non-depressed older adults.
IRAS ID
156723
Contact name
Louise Sweeney
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
NHS Lanarkshire
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 11 months, 9 days
Research summary
TITLE - An examination of self-defining memories, functional avoidance and metacognitive processes in depressed and non-depressed older adults.
Self-defining memories (SDMs) are a subtype of autobiographical information heavily involved in how we develop and maintain a sense of self. They are vivid, emotionally intense, and repetitively recalled memories of events that relate to important experiences and life themes. Few studies have examined SDMs in healthy older adults (OAs) and none have determined the processes that affect the recall of these memories. Furthermore, no study has investigated SDMs in depressed OAs. Our lack of understanding in this area is an important gap given that depression is characterised by an overgeneral autobiographical memory style marked by reduced recall of event details. This overgeneral pattern impacts negatively on problem solving, engagement in psychotherapy, and clinical outcome. Hence, understanding factors that influence the recall of SDMs is potentially relevant to guiding improvements of psychological treatments. We plan to compare the characteristics of SDMs in depressed and non-depressed OAs. In addition, we will determine how the overuse of mental avoidance strategies and problems with metacognition (the ability to describe and think about ones own thought processes) affects the ability to make sense of experiences. Participants will be recruited from community groups/libraries and Community Mental Health Teams in NHS Lanarkshire. The assessment will involve one appointment lasting 60-90 minutes. The tasks include questionnaires about mood and thinking style, neuropsychological tests of cognitive functioning, and memory tests focused on SDMs. Participants with active substance misuse and neurological disorders will be excluded as will people with insufficient command of spoken English. The main statistical analyses will involve comparing the patterns of memory functioning between the control and depressed groups as well examining the correlations between SDMs and other cognitive processes such as metacognition and habitual thought suppression.
REC name
West of Scotland REC 5
REC reference
14/WS/1121
Date of REC Opinion
21 Oct 2014
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion