Life Stories and Mental Health: The Role of Identification Processes in Theory and Interventions

The goal of this article is to explore the relations between narratives and mental health from a psychological perspective. We argue that a process of identification with personal experiences underlies narrative structures that are known to be related to mental health. Overidentification and underidentification are described as general processes underlying mental health problems. Gerontological insights in reminiscence and life review and cognitive psychological studies on autobiographical memories validate this claim. Practical applications in mental health care provide even further evidence for the role of identification processes in mental health and how they can be targeted in intervention

Parental Co‐Construction of 5‐ to 13‐Year‐Olds\u27 Global Self‐Esteem Through Reminiscing About Past Events

The current study explored parental processes associated with children\u27s global self‐esteem development. Eighty 5‐ to 13‐year‐olds and one of their parents provided qualitative and quantitative data through questionnaires, open‐ended questions, and a laboratory‐based reminiscing task. Parents who included more explanations of emotions when writing about the lowest points in their lives were more likely to discuss explanations of emotions experienced in negative past events with their child, which was associated with child attachment security. Attachment was associated with concurrent self‐esteem, which predicted relative increases in self‐esteem 16 months later, on average. Finally, parent support also predicted residual increases in self‐esteem. Findings extend prior research by including younger ages and uncovering a process by which two theoretically relevant parenting behaviors impact self‐esteem development

On Second Thought

{Excerpt} Remembering times past stimulates the mind and helps give perspective and a sense of who we are. Social reminiscence is a gain in performance without practice. Reminiscing, be it simple, informative, or of the life review, therapeutic variety—different but overlapping types exist—is a uniquely human activity that plays a vital role. By recalling the past, celebrating accomplishments and—as necessary—coming to terms with disappointments, individuals can achieve a heightened sense of personal identity and self-continuity, notably in their social relationships. At the confluence of voluntary memory and events, circumstances, and experience, they can find meaning and coherence in life and work

The relationship between time perspective and subjective well-being of older adults

Time perspective is crucial for our present and future plans, and for the way we act in the present. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between time perspective and subjective well-being in older adults. The sample of our questionnaire study consisted of 149 older adults aged between 65 and 96 years. Time perspective was measured with the Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory. The five time perspective dimensions were related to four specific aspects of subjective well-being (positive affect, negative affect, life satisfaction and depression). Future-oriented older persons had a more positive affect. Older adults who were positively oriented towards the past appeared to be more satisfied with life. A hedonistic view of the present was related to a high positive affect:Older persons with a Past-Negative perspective were more likely to experience negative affect and depressive feelings, along with a lower level of positive affect and satisfaction with life. The Present-Fatalistic time perspective correlated with more depressive symptoms. The findings emphasize the relevance of time perspective styles for the subjective well-being, which has specific implications for the way caregivers could interact with older adults to enhance quality of life

Music Therapy Techniques for Memory Stabilization in Diverse Dementias

Music contains certain unmistakable healing properties pertaining specifically to the matured body and soul affected by various types of dementia. Music therapy aids in memory retention or the retarding of the loss of mental function as a result of Alzheimer\u27s disease, Dementia with Lewy bodies, and Senile Dementia. Music can help subjects access lost memories through interaction with a music therapist. Certain music therapy techniques have been shown to yield additional physical, communicative, and psychological benefits. The disease progress of Alzheimer\u27s disease, Dementia with Lewy bodies, and Senile Dementia may be further delayed by music therapy when paired with pharmaceutical interventions such as previously established memory enhancing medications

The me in memory:the role of the self in autobiographical memory development

This paper tests the hypothesis that self development plays a role in the offset of childhood amnesia; assessing the importance of both the capacity to anchor a memory to the self-concept, and the strength of the self-concept as an anchor. We demonstrate for the first time that the volume of 3- to 6-year-old’s specific autobiographical memories is predicted by both the volume of their self-knowledge, and their capacity for self-source monitoring within self-referencing paradigms (N =186). Moreover, there is a bidirectional relationship between self and memory, such that autobiographical memory mediates the link between self-source monitoring and self-knowledge. These predictive relationships suggests that the self memory system is active in early childhood

Transformative Reminiscence Training For Older Adults: Increasing Self-Positive Reminiscence During Self-Directed Life Reviews

For this dissertation, I tested whether Transformative Reminiscence Training is a viable alternative to facilitated life reviews for older adults. Facilitated life reviews involve structured reminiscence, which is designed to enhance the self-positive functions of identity consolidation, problem solving, and meaning-making death preparation (Korte, 2012). Transformative Reminiscence Training combines life review methods with consciousness raising. It is based on Paulo Freire’s critical theory (2000) and includes psychosocial, perspective transformation, and narrative identity life review education. Using a pre-posttest, randomized experimental design, I explored whether Transformative Reminiscence Training would result in (a) the completion of a self-directed life review, (b) increased self-positive reminiscence, and (c) reduced self-negative reminiscence over a two-week period, in comparison to a control group. The study involved 52 non-vulnerable community dwelling adults who were placed in either an intervention or control group using stratified random assignment. All participants completed pretests and posttests of the reliable and valid Reminiscence Functions Scale (Webster, 1993; 1997). The results of the Fisher’s Exact Test showed that there was no significant difference between the intervention and control group in the completing two-week self-directed life reviews. The results of the Paired T-Test showed significant differences between groups, with increases in self-positive reminiscence. The results of the alternative non-parametric Exact Sign Test showed a significant difference between intervention and control groups, in terms of decreases in self-negative reminiscence. These results imply an association between Transformative Reminiscence Training and increased use of self-positive reminiscence

Down memory lane : a mixed method investigation of the reminiscence bump in the dynamics of autobiographical memory

Research into the reminiscence bump aims to improve our understanding of how the memories formed during our adolescence and early adulthood subsequently influence our autobiographical recollections later in life. The purpose of this study was to investigate the temporal dynamics of autobiographical memory in a sample involving two different age groups of adult South African participants. The main objective of the research was to explore the participants’ memories for salient events and to determine whether these memories exhibit the typical reminiscence bump that has been found in autobiographical memory research. This sample consisted of two sets of cohorts, totalling 48 research participants. The first group comprised participants ranging between the ages of 40 and 59 years, and the second group involved participants ranging between the ages of 60 to 79 years. A convergent parallel mixed method approach was adopted in this study. Both quantitative and qualitative data, on the distribution, valence and life domain importance of the reminiscence bump, were collected through the lifeline interview method. The results confirmed that reminiscence bumps are reflected in the memories of both age groups between the ages of 10 and 30 years. Most life events recalled were of positive affect thus confirming the positivity bias in older adults. The family and home life domains were indicated as the most important life domains in the autobiographical memories of both groups. The main conclusion drawn from the study was that there was not a significant difference in the dynamics of the autobiographical memories between the two groups, as reflected in the temporal characteristics of their reminiscence bumps. Future research could further explore the patterns of memories, and researchers could in particular investigate the semantic and affective aspects of these autobiographical memories in more depth.PsychologyM.A. (Psychology

Mental sleep activity and disturbing dreams in the lifespan

Sleep significantly changes across the lifespan, and several studies underline its crucial role in cognitive functioning. Similarly, mental activity during sleep tends to covary with age. This review aims to analyze the characteristics of dreaming and disturbing dreams at dierent age brackets. On the one hand, dreams may be considered an expression of brain maturation and cognitive development, showing relations with memory and visuo-spatial abilities. Some investigations reveal that specific electrophysiological patterns, such as frontal theta oscillations, underlie dreams during sleep, as well as episodic memories in the waking state, both in young and older adults. On the other hand, considering the role of dreaming in emotional processing and regulation, the available literature suggests that mental sleep activity could have a beneficial role when stressful events occur at dierent age ranges. We highlight that nightmares and bad dreams might represent an attempt to cope the adverse events, and the degrees of cognitive-brain maturation could impact on these mechanisms across the lifespan. Future investigations are necessary to clarify these relations. Clinical protocols could be designed to improve cognitive functioning and emotional regulation by modifying the dream contents or the ability to recall/non-recall them

The use of reminiscence as an intervention to increase levels of ego integrity among elderly in long term nursing facility, 1993

This study examined the use of reminiscence as an intervention for two elderly individuals who were residents at a long term nursing facility due to a life transitional circumstance. The instrument package included: an adapted reminiscence questionnaire from Havighurst and Glasser and Ego Adjustment Subscales from Constantinople. The participants were asked questions regarding reminiscence in five different categories: (1) frequency of reminiscence; (2) were reminiscence experiences pleasant or unpleasant, (3) under what conditions did you find reminiscence effective, (4) what is the effect of reminiscence for you, and (5) in retrospect is your thinking different than in the past. A sixth question required participants to reminiscence on special developmental moments. All questions were asked in the form of a structured interview. During the baseline period, intervention, and follow-up repeated measures of Ego Adjustment Subscales were used to increase the participants ego integrity. Results demonstrated that participants had moderate levels of ego integrity during baseline. Therefore, reminiscence only slightly increased ego integrity among the participants