Autobiographical memory and the self: A transition theory perspective

Abstract

In contrast to much theoretical work on the topic, Transition Theory (Brown, 2016(Brown, , 2021 attempts to account for important aspects of autobiographical memory in a way that emphasizes the structure of experience, rather than the relation between personal-event memories and the Self. This article provides the rationale for adopting this minimalist stance. Here it is argued that: (a) an all-inclusive notion of the Self is of little utility to the study of autobiographical memory because virtually all sentient goal-directed activities can be seen as reflecting the Self, hence, adopting this view provides no bias for predicting event memorability; (b) although some event memories are clearly Selfrelevant (e.g., life-story events, turning points, self-defining memories), most are not; (c) the formation of and access to Self-knowledge typically does not depend on the availability of specific autobiographical memories; rather, (d) Self-knowledge is generally derived from massive amounts of readily forgotten role-relevant experience.

The interdisciplinary science of autobiographical memory

“…This theory suggests that distinctiveness, affect and rehearsal are central to the formation of long‐lasting autobiographical memories and that self‐knowledge does not necessarily depend on access to specific memories but on the massive amounts of readily forgotten role‐relevant experience. Brown (2023) explains that memories are not necessarily encoded and retained because they are self‐relevant. According to the transition theory perspective, experience is what counts.…”

“…The link between autobiographical memory and the self is assessed through the perspectives of function and dysfunction by Brown (2023) and by Bulteau et al (2023), respectively. Similarly, autobiographical specificity is addressed within the framework of psychiatry (by Barry et al, 2023;Brown, 2023;Bulteau et al, 2023) and neurology (by Fan…”

“…The link between autobiographical memory and the self is assessed through the perspectives of function and dysfunction by Brown (2023) and by Bulteau et al (2023), respectively. Similarly, autobiographical specificity is addressed within the framework of psychiatry (by Barry et al, 2023; Brown, 2023; Bulteau et al, 2023) and neurology (by Fan et al, 2023; Irish, 2023; Kaiser & Berntsen, 2023; Markowitsch & Staniloiu, 2023). As for autobiographical memory, it is investigated through the perspectives of developmental psychology (Fivush & Grysman, 2023), social psychology (Heux et al, 2023), experimental psychology (Sow et al, 2023), and philosophy (Moulin et al, 2023).…”

“…Each of the 12 contributions to this special issue offers a unique yet interdisciplinary account of autobiographical memory. The link between autobiographical memory and the self is assessed through the perspectives of function and dysfunction by Brown (2023) and by Bulteau et al (2023), respectively. Similarly, autobiographical specificity is addressed within the framework of psychiatry (by Barry et al, 2023; Brown, 2023; Bulteau et al, 2023) and neurology (by Fan et al, 2023; Irish, 2023; Kaiser & Berntsen, 2023; Markowitsch & Staniloiu, 2023).…”

“…They suggest that research may adequately capture specificity, detail, and narrative elements related to both theme and structure, if the methodology is broadened to include paradigms that stress the importance of thinking about important events from the past and giving people the time and encouragement to share these memories in as much detail as possible. Autobiographical specificity is also mentioned by Brown (2023) who suggests that access to self-knowledge does not necessarily depend on the availability of specific autobiographical memories. Brown (2023) also proposes to examine the structure of autobiographical experience through a transition theory perspective, rather than through the simple relationship between personal-event memories and the self.…”