Autobiographical memory in a case of multiple personality disorder

Article Abstract:

Psychologists believe that traumatic childhood experiences may play a role in the onset of multiple personality disorder (MPD). However, little research has been directed towards the autobiographical memory of these patients. Although dense amnesia between personalities is widely regarded as a consistent feature of MPD, i.e. different personalities do not have access to each other's memories, almost nothing has been learned about the ability of each personality to remember events in its own past. In the case of a 24-year-old woman, at least four personalities developed in addition to her base personality. The new personalities were aware of each other and the base personality, but the base personality is aware only of periods of blackout and does not accept the diagnosis of MPD. Biographical interviews revealed that the woman had a bias towards remembering recent events that was greater than control subjects. Although normal subjects have difficulty remembering events from before the age of three to four years, the patient remembered little from before the age of 10. It is impossible to distinguish from this case if the deficit in autobiographical memory is unique to MPD or whether it is an independent consequence of the childhood abuse believed to have occurred. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Memory, Disorders of, Memory disorders, Amnesia

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Implicit and explicit memory for verbal information presented during sleep

Article Abstract:

Medical student subjects were tested for implicit memory for word associations presented during rapid eye movement (REM) or Stage 2 sleep. A control group of wide-awake students were given the same experimental data and tested for results. Results indicate that the sleeping subjects had no implicit memory of the words, and for the few cases who had, it was shown that arousal immediately followed word presentation. Control group subjects meanwhile, displayed word recall and learning effects.

Memory, Short-term memory, Sleep-learning

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Autobiographical memory across personalities in dissociative identity disorder: a case report

Article Abstract:

A case study of the autobiographical memory of a patient with dissociative identity disorder (DID), before and after diagnosis, suggests that DID is related to modifications in autobiographical memory. In addition, memories vary across personalities. In the reported case, the child personality identified half of the host personality's memories. The results are interpreted with respect to the memory and pseudomemory progression during DID.

Dissociation (Psychology), Dissociative disorders, Autobiographical memory

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