In five pages the significance of the development of autobiographical memory as it shapes personality is examined in a discussion that also includes the accuracy of memory flashbacks and its impact upon witness statement reliability. Seven sources are cited in the bibliography.
Name of Research Paper File: JL5_JLautomem.rtf
Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
Autobiographical memory, as its
name suggests, is the form of memory which is concerned with events and issues directly related to the individual. It includes the memory of particular experiences and facts which are
connected with ones personal history: for instance, although remembering that one owns a car is not the same as the recollection of purchasing it, both are components of autobiographical memory.
It can include the long-term recall of an event, in terms of its general features, the way in which the event is interpreted, and some particular and significant details of
the event.
There are three main elements of autobiographical memory: personal, factual and generic. The first consists of a singular event, and is image-based: for example, the birth of ones child.
The second is fact- rather than image-based: the knowledge that one has a child. The third occurs when there have been a series of similar events in ones past life:
after having given birth to several children, the events which occurred at one birth may blur into the others, so that it is difficult to recall exactly which events were
peculiar to which birth.
Autobiographical memories are to a certain extent dependant on personal interpretation, which means they may be accurate in some respects but not in others. Conway (1996) for