Patterns in autobiographical reminiscing among early adults: Implications for forgiveness and self‐compassion

Abstract

The ways early adults recount autobiographical experiences are associated with adjustment. Most prior research on autobiographical reminiscing has taken a variable-oriented approach to examine relations of reminiscing variables with outcomes. The present study takes a person-oriented approach to (a) identify systematic within-individual patterns of reminiscing across multiple autobiographical memories; and (b) examine whether these patterns of reminiscing are uniquely related to selfcompassion and forgiveness. Participants were early adults (18 to 24 years) from undergraduate (n = 221) and community (n = 145) contexts. Participants self-reported forgiveness and self-compassion and described three autobiographical memories about past challenges: (a) a time they hurt someone else; (b) a time they were hurt by someone; and (c) a time they experienced a personal setback.Each memory was rated for positive self-meaning (personal growth) and distancing of the current self from the past event (subjective distancing). Cluster analyses showed three subgroup patterns for personal growth and five subgroup patterns for subjective distancing. Participants displaying a pattern of higher personal growth across memories reported the highest forgiveness. Findings point to meaningful heterogeneity in autobiographical

Narrative identity informs psychological adjustment: Considering three themes captured across five time points and two event valences

“…Some of our most compelling findings involved narrative coherence. Coherence showed relative intraindividual stability across both event valence and time, in accordance with previous findings about the intraindividual stability of narrative coherence (Booker et al, 2020;McAdams et al, 2010;McLean et al, 2017;2019). Coherence was also routinely correlated with adjustment measures.…”

“…Indeed, individuals with greater integrations of personal growth within their LP events reported fewer perceptions of recent stress and greater well‐being within time points. In multiple studies, narrated expressions of growth are positively associated with concurrent and longitudinal endorsements of well‐being, self‐compassion, and forgiveness toward others—ways of recognizing fulfillment and purpose, as well as extending kindness and understanding to the self and others (Bauer & McAdams, 2010; Booker, 2019; Mansfield et al., 2015). Both in theory and research, narrated growth reflects forms of personal transformation and maturation (see Pals & McAdams, 2004).…”

“…However, only about 45% of the US population in this age range are enrolled in a 4‐year college (National Center for Educational Statistics, 2020), and there remains a gap in examining emerging adults from multiple educational and work settings and across the entire age range of emerging adulthood (Arnett, 2000, 2014). To date, the few studies that consider emerging adults outside of the full‐time college setting suggest that a coherent, growth‐oriented narrative identity is similarly beneficial for these individuals (i.e., Booker, 2019; McLean & Pratt, 2006; Waters et al., 2019, Study 2).…”

It’s is Time to Make More Goals So I Can Keep Pushing: Hope, Growth, and Well-Being Among Young Black Women

“…Participants were asked to provide their lessons or ‘bottom lines’ from each experience. These narratives were based on a previous study recruiting ethnically diverse samples of college- and community-recruited young adults (Booker, 2019). There was no time- or word-limit for narrative responses ( M word count = 151.55; SD = 110.75).…”

Revisiting Redemption: A Life Span Developmental Account of the Functions of Narrative Redemption

“…Narratives were collected as part of a larger project conducted by J.A. Booker (for more details, see Booker, 2019). All narratives were provided in written (i.e., typed) form by college students (n = 212; ages 18-24; mean age 19.12 years, SD 1.13; 54.9% female) at a private university in the Southeastern USA.…”