Short report: Influence of culture and trauma history on autobiographical memory specificity

Abstract

This study investigated the influence of culture and trauma history on autobiographical memory specificity. Chinese international and British undergraduate university students (N=64) completed the Autobiographical Memory Test, Hopkins Symptom Checklist-25, Twenty Statements Test, Trauma History Questionnaire, and Impact of Events Scale-Revised. The results indicated that the British group provided significantly more specific memories than the Chinese group. The high trauma exposure group provided significantly fewer specific autobiographical memories than the low trauma exposure group. The interaction was not significant. The findings suggest that even in cultures where specificity is not as evident in autobiographical remembering style, trauma exposure appears to exert similar influence on autobiographical memory specificity.

Keywords:

• Post-traumatic stress disorder
• Autobiographical memory
• Culture

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Laura Jobson is funded by a Postdoctoral Research Fellowship award from the National Institute for Health Research.