Memory for Complex Emotional Material in Dissociative Identity Disorder
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1-1-2011
Abstract
Eleven women with dissociative identity disorder (DID) participated in an experiment that included a variety of memory measures. DID participants were faster than a group of 13 female students at producing autobiographical memories in response to cue words. DID participants had difficulty answering detailed questions about a story containing fear compared with a neutral story; the student group did not. The DID group reported experiencing significantly more childhood trauma than did the student group. Effect sizes were moderate to high. This preliminary study uses a broad conceptualization of memory functioning, combining ecologically valid testing with experimental paradigms and addressing the impact of emotion on memory in trauma survivors.
Publication Information
Barlow, M. Rose. (2011). "Memory for Complex Emotional Material in Dissociative Identity Disorder". Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 12(1), 53-66. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15299732.2010.496144