College alumnae who had graduated 2, 12, or 22 years earlier completed questionnaires in which they recounted the first four memories to come to mind of their freshman year and provided ratings of each remembered experience. For all three alumnae groups, the temporal distribution of memories peaked in September, the beginning of college. Mean ratings of emotional intensity were high, mean ratings of surprise and life impact were below the moderate level and substantial numbers of memories had never been recounted previously. The proportion of memories that focused on specific episodes rather than on general experiences decreased as the number of years since graduation increased. The incidence of specific memories also declined as a function of memory order: Memories reported first were more likely to be specific than memories reported later. The results suggest that transitional and emotional episodes arc especially likely to persist in memory for many years.When participants in a research study are asked to report their memories, the request usually is directed to specific events selected by the experimenter. In laboratory studies, subjects may recall numbers, words, or stories presented a short time earlier. In studies of memories formed in everyday contexts, recollections of specific events also are commonly requested, such as first learning about assassination attempts on U.S. presidents (Brown & Kulik, 1977;Pillemer, 1984;Winograd & Killinger, 1983), having the first menstrual period (Pillemer, Koff, Rhinehart, & Rierdan, 1987), witnessing a crime (Yuille & Cutshall, 1986), and making the decision to terminate a pregnancy (Blackburne-Stover, Belenky, & Gilligan, 1982).Providing information about pinpointed events is a familiar occurrence, but it is neither the only nor necessarily the most common form of sharing one's past with others. Requests for information may also specify a broad class of events, such as those associated with certain types of personal relationships (e.g., Harvey, Flanary, & Morgan, 1986), time periods (e.g., Robinson, 1986), or activities such as trips (e.g., Messe, Buldain, & Watts, 1981). Although constrained by the parameters specified in the question, the respondent is free to select particular memories. For example, in response to the person cue, "Tell me about Michelle," the respondent may offer recent or remote memories, reply in general terms, or focus on a specific salient interaction.In this article we examine personal memories cued by reference to a meaningful unit of time: an academic year. Women who had graduated 2, 12, or 22 years earlier described This research was supported by a grant from the Spencer Foundation and by a Brachman Hoffman award from Wellesley College.The staff of the Wellesley College Alumnae Office provided valuable assistance.
