Autobiographical memory in acute stress disorder.
Abstract
Survivors of motor vehicle accidents with acute stress disorder (ASD) or with no ASD participated in a study on autobiographical memory within a week of their trauma. In Experiment 1, participants were provided cue words to elicit autobiographical memories of both an unconstrained time period and their trauma. Participants with ASD reported fewer specific memories to positive cue words than did non-ASD participants, even when the influence of depression was controlled. In Experiment 2, the same participants were assessed for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) 6 months posttrauma. Poor recall of specific memories of the trauma in Experiment 1 accounted for 25% of the variance of PTSD severity. Accessibility of trauma memories in the acute posttrauma phase may have significant implications for longer term adjustment.
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Cited by (17)
- Autobiographical memory specificity and emotional disorder.Williams, J. Mark G., Barnhofer, Thorsten, Crane, Catherine, Herman, Dirk, Raes, Filip, Watkins, Ed, Dalgleish, Tim · 2007 · Psychological Bulletin
- A meta-analysis of structural brain abnormalities in PTSDKARL, A, SCHAEFER, M, MALTA, L, DORFEL, D, ROHLEDER, N, WERNER, A · 2006 · Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews
- Chronic pain and posttraumatic stress disorder: Mutual maintenance?Sharp, Timothy J, Harvey, Allison G · 2001 · Clinical Psychology Review
- Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy reduces overgeneral autobiographical memory in formerly depressed patientsWilliams, J. Mark G., Teasdale, John D., Segal, Zindel V., Soulsby, Judith · 2000 · Journal of Abnormal Psychology
- Self-defining memories, scripts, and the life story: Narrative identity in personality and psychotherapySinger, Jefferson A., Blagov, Pavel, Berry, Meredith, Oost, Kathryn M. · 2013 · Journal of Personality
How to cite
Cite CoChat for the checks on this page, and the paper for its own findings.
- This page
- CoChat. (2026). Citation check: Autobiographical memory in acute stress disorder. https://app.cochat.ai/papers/10.1037//0022-006x.66.3.500
- The paper
- Harvey, A. G., Bryant, R. A., & Dang, S. T. (1998). Autobiographical memory in acute stress disorder. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1037//0022-006x.66.3.500
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