Abstract

Prior research indicates that people call on autobiographical memories to serve social, self-related, and directive functions (Bluck, 2003). The first goal of the current study was to examine whether the emotions associated with memories influence the functions those memories serve at recall. In Study 1, participants recalled nine memories, each associated with a distinct emotion (i.e., guilt and happiness). For each memory, they reported one time they recalled the event and rated the functions that were served. As expected, certain types of emotional memories were associated with certain autobiographical functions. The second goal was to more closely consider the emotions associated with memories that serve to define the self. Studies 2 and 3 examined the impact people feel self-defining memories events have had on them (and how this subjective impact relates to meaning making), and the pattern of current and recalled emotions for these self-defining memories (Singer & Moffitt, 1991-1992). In Study 2, subjective impact was shown to be a good marker for meaning making with respect to self-defining events. In Study 3, participants recalled five self-defining memories, reported ten current and recalled emotions for each event, and rated the subjective impact of each event. A pattern of benefaction (i.e., less current negative and more current positive emotion) emerged for self-defining memories, which was accounted for by subjective impact.