title: Supporting the self-concept with memory: insight from amnesia.
abstract: We investigated the extent to which personal semantic memory supports the self-concept in individuals with medial temporal lobe amnesia and healthy adults. Participants completed eight 'I Am' self-statements. For each of the four highest ranked self-statements, participants completed an open-ended narrative task, during which they provided supporting information indicating why the I Am statement was considered self-descriptive. Participants then completed an episodic probe task, during which they attempted to retrieve six episodic memories for each of these self-statements. Supporting information was scored as episodic, personal semantic or general semantic. In the narrative task, personal semantic memory predominated as self-supporting information in both groups. The amnesic participants generated fewer personal semantic memories than controls to support their self-statements, a deficit that was more pronounced for trait relative to role self-statements. In the episodic probe task, the controls primarily generated unique event memories, but the amnesic participants did not. These findings demonstrate that personal semantic memory, in particular autobiographical fact knowledge, plays a critical role in supporting the self-concept, regardless of the accessibility of episodic memories, and they highlight potential differences in the way traits and roles are supported by personal memory.
authors.affiliation: Memory Disorders Research Center, VA Boston Healthcare System and Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, USA matthew.grilli@va.gov.
authors.forename: Matthew D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Grilli
authors.affiliation: Memory Disorders Research Center, VA Boston Healthcare System and Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
authors.forename: Mieke
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Verfaellie
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000647:Amnesia / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007361:Intelligence Tests; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory; D061212:Memory, Episodic; D008875:Middle Aged; D011597:Psychomotor Performance; D012649:Self Concept
keywords: amnesia; episodic memory; personal semantics; self