Remote memory processes in early Alzheimer's disease.
Item
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Title
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Remote memory processes in early Alzheimer's disease.
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Identifier
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AAI9009758
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identifier
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9009758
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Creator
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Malamut, Barbara Lynn.
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Contributor
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Adviser: Wilma G. Rosen
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Date
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1989
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Psychology, Experimental | Psychology, Physiological | Psychology, Clinical
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Abstract
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Severe anterograde amnesia is considered a hallmark of Alzheimer's Disease (AD) even in the early stages, yet little is known about the status of remote memory functioning. The purpose of this study was to examine remote memory for both autobiographical and public events in early AD with regard to semantic and episodic information and its temporal distribution.;Autobiographical memory was assessed by modifying a technique developed by Crovitz & Schiffman (1974) where single words were used as prompts to elicit memories. Whereas previous studies used words not targeted to any time period (temporally neutral), the present study included words that were strongly associated with specific decades from the 1920's to the present. Memory for public events was assessed with an updated version of the Boston Remote Memory Battery (BRM).;Overall, patients recalled fewer autobiographical memories and in less detail than healthy elderly controls. When memory content was examined, the presence of a temporal gradient was dependent upon whether the words were decade specific or neutral. Decade specific words yielded an equal loss for all decades, while neutral words yielded a loss that was most severe for recent decades.;Results of the BRM demonstrated a severe impairment for patients relative to controls that was characterized by poorer performance across all decades. These findings conflict with those of the autobiographical memory test when neutral words were included in the analyses but are in agreement with the temporal distribution when analyzing only decade specific words.;When results of both tests were considered together, they indicated that remote memory for both semantic and episodic information was greatly affected in the early stages of AD. Furthermore, the presence of a temporal gradient was dependent upon the structure of the task. When questions or prompt words targeted the same time periods and each time period was equally represented, the patients' memory loss was extensive and affected all decades equally. When words were neutral and allowed patients to exhibit a bias, a temporal gradient that was most severe for recent decades was found.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
