Positive autobiographical memories in the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms: An exploratory intervention study.

Abstract

Objective: The processing of positive memories technique (PPMT) capitalizes on the content of positive autobiographical memories (AMs) to reduce posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. To advance research on how and why PPMT is effective, this study examined whether and how changes in self-reported positive AM characteristics (vividness, coherence, accessibility, sensory details, visual perspective, emotional intensity, sharing, valence, psychological distance) associated with changes in PTSD symptom severity across PPMT sessions. Method: Seventy individuals were recruited from the community (Mage = 30.44 ± 12.78; 71.4% of participants identified as White, 72.9% identified as female) and received four sessions of PPMT. They completed surveys at baseline (pre-PPMT), at each PPMT session (Sessions 1–4), and 1 week after attending all PPMT sessions (post-PPMT). Results: Paired samples t tests indicated a decrease in PTSD symptom severity pre- to post-PPMT (p