The voluntary and involuntary retrieval of autobiographical memories: An investigation using a cue-word method

  • Amemiya Y
  • Taka F
  • Sugiyama T
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Abstract

Currently, a well-supported model of the processes underlying voluntary and involuntary autobiographical memory retrieval hypothesizes that involuntary memory retrieval is a unique process, which is triggered by retrieval cues with low abstractness and directly recovers specific memories. However, Amemiya, Taka, and Sekiguchi (2011) proposed a revised model, in which involuntary memories are mere products of a process shared by voluntary and involuntary memories, and stated that generative retrieval, which is unique to voluntary memory, recovers memories with higher specificity. In this study, a cue-word method experiment involving the use of cue words that represented frequent or less frequent events was conducted to compare voluntary and involuntary memory retrieval. Involuntary memory retrieval was induced equally frequently, regardless of the abstractness of memory cues, and the more abstract cues induced less specific memories in both types of memory. Furthermore, the specificity of retrieved memories was higher for voluntary memories than for involuntary memories. These findings support Amemiya et al.’s revised model, which also provides an explanation for the seemingly contradictory findings of prior research.

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APA

Amemiya, Y., Taka, F., & Sugiyama, T. (2019). The voluntary and involuntary retrieval of autobiographical memories: An investigation using a cue-word method. THE JAPANESE JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, 59(1), 14–24. https://doi.org/10.2130/jjesp.1804

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