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Updated: May 22, 2026
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Brain Imaging Investigation of the Neural Correlates of Emotional Autobiographical Recollection
Published on: August 26, 2011
Examining overgeneral autobiographical memory as a risk factor for adolescent depression.
1Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College London, 26 Bedford Way, London, WC1H 0AP, UK. a.rawal@ucl.ac.uk
Summary
Overgeneral autobiographical memory (OGM) predicts the onset of depressive disorder and symptoms in at-risk adolescents. This cognitive factor specifically identifies future depression, not other disorders, highlighting its role as a risk factor.
Area of Science:
- Psychiatry
- Developmental Psychology
- Cognitive Neuroscience
Background:
- Identifying risk factors for adolescent depression is crucial.
- Overgeneral autobiographical memory (OGM) is linked to adolescent depression and considered a potential cognitive risk factor.
- Previous research has not established whether OGM predicts the development of adolescent depressive disorder.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate overgeneral autobiographical memory (OGM) as a predictor of depressive disorder and symptoms in a longitudinal study of high-risk adolescents.
- To examine cross-sectional associations between OGM and current depression.
- To compare OGM in depressed adolescents with different clinical outcomes over time.
Main Methods:
- A 1-year longitudinal study involving 277 adolescents (aged 10-18) with a familial risk for depression.
- Assessment of autobiographical memory at baseline.
- Clinical interviews to determine diagnostic status at baseline and 1-year follow-up.
Main Results:
- Adolescents with current depression exhibited an OGM bias compared to those without disorders or with anxiety/externalizing disorders.
- OGM to negative cues predicted the onset of depressive disorder and symptoms at follow-up in adolescents initially free of depression.
- This predictive effect remained significant after accounting for age, IQ, and baseline depressive symptoms.
- OGM did not predict the onset of anxiety or externalizing disorders.
- No significant difference in OGM was found between adolescents with persistent depressive disorder and those who recovered.
Conclusions:
- OGM, particularly in response to negative cues, serves as a predictor for the onset of depressive disorder and symptoms in adolescents with familial risk.
- The findings support the role of OGM as a specific risk factor for adolescent depression.
- OGM's predictive power was specific to depressive disorders, distinguishing it from anxiety and externalizing disorders.
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