Specificity of autobiographical memory in depressed older adults and its relationship with working memory and IQ

Abstract

Objectives: The study investigated whether depressed older adults retrieve fewer specific memories and more categoric memories than non-depressed older adults on the autobiographical memory test (AMT). The second objective was to investigate the relationship between AMT performance and both working memory and intelligence quotient (IQ).

Design: The study was cross-sectional, involving a single interview with each participant.

Methods: A group of 17 depressed participants was matched for age, gender and education with a group of 17 non-depressed participants. All were screened for cognitive impairment. Participants completed the AMT, spatial span and letter-number sequencing subtests of the Wechsler Memory Scale III and the Wechsler Test of Adult Reading.

Results: The depressed group retrieved significantly fewer specific memories than the non-depressed group, but did not differ in their categoric memory recall. Specific memory scores were positively correlated with measures of working memory, but not with IQ. Categoric memory scores were negatively correlated with measures of working memory, but not with IQ.

Conclusions: Depression adversely affects older adults' ability to retrieve specific memories. Working memory capacity was related to specific autobiographical memory retrieval independently of IQ. A strong relationship between AMT performance and spatial span is discussed.