Specificity and Emotional Characteristics of the Autobiographical Memories of Male and Female Criminal Offenders

Abstract

Research on autobiographical memory (AM) has identified problems with remembering specific events in clinical populations, which appear to be related to impaired executive functioning. This study explored whether offenders presented an overgeneral AM (OAM), as problems in executive functioning have been reported in offenders. We compared specificity, spontaneity, and phenomenological characteristics of AMs in offenders (46 men, 46 women) and in a control group (45 men, 47 women). This study also analyzed how depressive symptoms, verbal fluency, and problem-solving skills interacted with AM characteristics. Offenders recalled less specific positive, but not negative, memories compared with controls. Specificity for positive events was related to verbal fluency, but only for male offenders. Positive specificity was related to emotional aspects only for female offenders. The results are discussed in light of the cognitive mechanisms underlying OAM and possible implications for the study of criminal behavior.