The way in which memories are stored and communicated makes the construction of autobiographical memories (AM) both an internal process and a social occurrence. Strong associations between reduced AM specificity and psychological adjustment have been found; however, the role significant others have in the socialization and co-construction of AM may have be overlooked. This study examines whether the process of sharing AMs and the perceived benefits of sharing these memories are associated with differences in specificity of AM, as well as explores methodological differences in how AMs are collected. Data from 177 participants was collected on the Most Important Memories Scale (MIMS), Autobiographical Memory Task (AMT), and other measures to control for depression, avoidance, rumination, and executive functioning. Results indicate the emerging adults most commonly share significant life events with close friends, verbally in person, for the purposes of self-explanation and validation. Perceiving sharing as beneficial, and higher specificity on positive AMT cues, were found to be significant predictors of retrieving a specific memory on the MIMS. Few significant gender differences were found in sharing practices, and no significant gender differences were found in specificity. The limitations and future directions for this research are discussed.
","abstract_html":"<p>The way in which memories are stored and communicated makes the construction of autobiographical memories (AM) both an internal process and a social occurrence. Strong associations between reduced AM specificity and psychological adjustment have been found; however, the role significant others have in the socialization and co-construction of AM may have be overlooked. This study examines whether the process of sharing AMs and the perceived benefits of sharing these memories are associated with differences in specificity of AM, as well as explores methodological differences in how AMs are collected. Data from 177 participants was collected on the Most Important Memories Scale (MIMS), Autobiographical Memory Task (AMT), and other measures to control for depression, avoidance, rumination, and executive functioning. Results indicate the emerging adults most commonly share significant life events with close friends, verbally in person, for the purposes of self-explanation and validation. Perceiving sharing as beneficial, and higher specificity on positive AMT cues, were found to be significant predictors of retrieving a specific memory on the MIMS. Few significant gender differences were found in sharing practices, and no significant gender differences were found in specificity. The limitations and future directions for this research are discussed.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Herting, Nicola"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Arts (MA)","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"Psychology","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["John-Paul Legerski"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2014,"date_issued":"2014-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2014-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T03:26:30Z","subjects":["autobiographical memory, co-construction, emerging adults, memory sharing, specificty"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://commons.und.edu/theses/1540","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["John-Paul Legerski"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Herting, Nicola"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Psychology"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Arts (MA)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["autobiographical memory, co-construction, emerging adults, memory sharing, specificty"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://commons.und.edu/theses/1540"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The way in which memories are stored and communicated makes the construction of autobiographical memories (AM) both an internal process and a social occurrence. Strong associations between reduced AM specificity and psychological adjustment have been found; however, the role significant others have in the socialization and co-construction of AM may have be overlooked. This study examines whether the process of sharing AMs and the perceived benefits of sharing these memories are associated with differences in specificity of AM, as well as explores methodological differences in how AMs are collected. Data from 177 participants was collected on the Most Important Memories Scale (MIMS), Autobiographical Memory Task (AMT), and other measures to control for depression, avoidance, rumination, and executive functioning. Results indicate the emerging adults most commonly share significant life events with close friends, verbally in person, for the purposes of self-explanation and validation. Perceiving sharing as beneficial, and higher specificity on positive AMT cues, were found to be significant predictors of retrieving a specific memory on the MIMS. Few significant gender differences were found in sharing practices, and no significant gender differences were found in specificity. The limitations and future directions for this research are discussed.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["The Association Between Autobiographical Memory Specificity And Memory Sharing In College Students"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["John-Paul Legerski"],"dc:creator":["Herting, Nicola"],"dc:description.abstract":["The way in which memories are stored and communicated makes the construction of autobiographical memories (AM) both an internal process and a social occurrence. Strong associations between reduced AM specificity and psychological adjustment have been found; however, the role significant others have in the socialization and co-construction of AM may have be overlooked. This study examines whether the process of sharing AMs and the perceived benefits of sharing these memories are associated with differences in specificity of AM, as well as explores methodological differences in how AMs are collected. Data from 177 participants was collected on the Most Important Memories Scale (MIMS), Autobiographical Memory Task (AMT), and other measures to control for depression, avoidance, rumination, and executive functioning. Results indicate the emerging adults most commonly share significant life events with close friends, verbally in person, for the purposes of self-explanation and validation. Perceiving sharing as beneficial, and higher specificity on positive AMT cues, were found to be significant predictors of retrieving a specific memory on the MIMS. Few significant gender differences were found in sharing practices, and no significant gender differences were found in specificity. The limitations and future directions for this research are discussed.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://commons.und.edu/theses/1540"],"dc:subject":["autobiographical memory, co-construction, emerging adults, memory sharing, specificty"],"dc:title":["The Association Between Autobiographical Memory Specificity And Memory Sharing In College Students"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Psychology"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Arts (MA)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T03:26:30Z"}