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Narrative processing primes autobiographical memories: Another instance of semantic-to-autobiographical memory
John H Mace1, Kenneth E Ingle2, Hope E Aaron2
1Psychology Department, Eastern Illinois University, Charleston, IL, 61920, USA. jhmace@eiu.edu.
Memory & Cognition
|March 20, 2025
Summary
Semantic-to-autobiographical memory priming, activated by narrative stories, increases involuntary autobiographical memories. This research shows stories can trigger memory recall, impacting everyday life.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Neuroscience
- Memory Research
Background:
- Semantic memory activation can trigger autobiographical memories.
- Semantic-to-autobiographical memory priming is observed across various stimuli.
- Previous research demonstrates priming effects with diverse sensory inputs.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate semantic-to-autobiographical memory priming within narrative contexts.
- To determine if reading a story can prime involuntary autobiographical memories.
- To extend the understanding of priming effects to story comprehension.
Main Methods:
- Participants read a short story containing prime words.
- An involuntary autobiographical memory task (vigilance task) followed the story.
- Control participants completed a letter string judgment task before the vigilance task.
Main Results:
- Story-primed participants recalled more involuntary autobiographical memories than controls.
- Priming effects were observed for both primed and unprimed memory content.
- Narrative processing effectively induced semantic-to-autobiographical memory priming.
Conclusions:
- Semantic-to-autobiographical memory priming is effective with narrative stimuli.
- This priming mechanism plays a role in generating involuntary autobiographical memories.
- Findings support the broad applicability of semantic-to-autobiographical memory priming.
Keywords:
Autobiographical memoryAutobiographical memory primingInvoluntary memorySemantic memorySemantic primingSemantic-to-autobiographical primingMore Related Videos
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