Self-defining Memories in Normal Aging

Overview & Synopsis

Background: Self-defining memories refer to events that are vivid, effectively intense, and include enduring concerns about oneself. Objective: We investigated the relationship between the production of these memories in normal aging and the ability to integrate new information into existing knowledge in memory (i.e., updating). Method: Older participants were asked to perform an updating task as well as to retrieve autobiographical memories that were later analyzed for their self-defining relevance. Results: Analyses showed significant positive correlations between updating and the production of self-defining memories. Conclusion: Updating our life story is an important psychological process,which enables us to refine and enrich our life story with new experiences, roles and/or challenges, and this ability seems to be related to the capacity to produce memories that draw on the pursuit of long-term goals, meaning making, emotional regulation, and/or activation of self-images (i.e., self-defining memories). These findings suggest that updating one’s identity throughout life, at least in normal aging, may be related to the shaping and retrieval of self-defining memories, memories that lead to the creation of narrative scripts, which themselves serve as the ingredients for “chapters” across the lifespan.