Abstract:
Memory research has shown mixed results concerning how emotional information is
processed (see Christianson, 1992, for review). One individual difference found to relate
to emotional processing (Belsky et al., 1997; Laible, 2004) and understanding (de Rosnay
& Harris, 2002) is attachment security. Further, because coping strategies are believed to
reflect behavioral outcomes of emotion regulation (Contreras et al., 2000), how children
cope with emotional situations may also predict their memory for such experiences. The
present study aimed to examine attachment qualities and coping strategies as individual
differences predicting recall of emotional and attachment-related events. Children
ranging from 7.5- to 12.5-years of age viewed a slideshow exhibiting stories that varied
in emotion and attachment relatedness. The following week, children were asked to freely
recall the pictures and stories, and they completed attachment and coping measures.
Results showed children's attachment security predicted recall of high attachment-related
events, specifically separation scenarios. To understand better these results, attachment
security was divided into subscales for parental availability and children's dependency. Findings indicated that children who perceived the parent as more
available recalled more attachment-related stimuli, specifically those involving
separation. These results indicate that attachment-related events may be processed
differently than emotional, but less attachment evoking events, and that memory for such
events may be influenced by individual differences in attachment security, particularly
how available the child perceives the caregiver.
Description:
Thesis (M.A., Child Development) -- California State University, Sacramento, 2009.