The Accuracy And Validity Of Autobiographical Memory Among...

The accuracy and validity of autobiographical memory among individuals who have experienced childhood sexual abuse (CSA) has been questioned since these experiences are highly emotional and traumatic. Some individuals may believe that recovered memories through the use of therapy or spontaneously may be recalled in an effort to gain money in a court case or seek revenge against an individual. In order to examine whether this statement of a disbelief in the accounts of individual’s experience with CSA is valid, the components of autobiographical memory, the specificity in the recall of autobiographical memory among repressed, recovered and continuous memories for individuals having experienced CSA, as well as the cognitive aspect of autobiographical memory will be presented. Autobiographical memory is divided into two components, which are personal semantic information and personal episodic information (Holland Kensinger, 2010). Personal semantic information is information that you know about yourself such as your name and birthplace. While personal episodic information is information about a specific event in your life such as the first time you learned how to ride a bike. In relation to CSA, personal semantic information would be the victim knowing the name of the perpetrator of the crime. As for personal episodic information, it would be remembering the experience of having been a victim of CSA as a whole. Personal episodic information entails further processes such as