Gender differences in emotional experiences across childhood, romantic relationship, and self-defining memories

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Boyacıoğlu Bal İ., Akfırat S., Yılmaz Samancı A. E.

JOURNAL OF COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY, vol.29, no.2, pp.137-150, 2017 (SSCI) identifier identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 29 Issue: 2
  • Publication Date: 2017
  • Doi Number: 10.1080/20445911.2016.1216996
  • Journal Name: JOURNAL OF COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY
  • Journal Indexes: Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Scopus
  • Page Numbers: pp.137-150
  • Keywords: Autobiographical memory, childhood memories, romantic relationship memories, self-defining memories, emotions, gender differences, AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL MEMORY, SEX-DIFFERENCES, REMINISCENCE, CULTURE, IMPACT, ADULTS, EVENT, CONVERSATIONS, SATISFACTION, STEREOTYPES
  • Dokuz Eylül University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

The aim of the present study is to examine the gender differences in emotional experiences across three different types of autobiographical memory. A total of 612 undergraduate students from Izmir, Turkey, were asked to recall a memory either from childhood, from romantic relationships, or from self-defining experiences. A gender difference was found in the intensity of anxiety, sadness, and pride for romantic relationship memories. Men had higher scores on emotional distancing than women in self-defining memories. With regard to emotional valance, women's feelings were less positive than men's feelings when remembering childhood and romantic relationship experiences, whereas they were more positive than men's feelings when remembering self-defining experiences. The findings support the notion that gender differences in emotional experiences during the autobiographical recollection of personal life events vary across different memory types.