On Telling the Whole Story: Facts and Interpretations in AutobiographicalMemory Narratives From Childhood Through Midadolescence

摘要

This article examines age differences from childhood through middle adolescence in the extent to whichchildren include factual and interpretive information in constructing autobiographical memory narratives.Factual information is defined as observable or perceptible information available to all individuals whoexperience a given event, while interpretive information is defined as information that articulates thedesires, emotions, beliefs, and thoughts of the participant and other individuals who experience an event.Developmental research suggests that the latter type of information should become particularly prevalentin later adolescence, while the former should be abundantly evident by age 8. Across 2 studies, we foundevidence for strong increases in interpretive information during adolescence, but not before. Theseincreases were evident across different types of events, and across different subtypes of interpretivecontent. The results are discussed in terms of their implications for the development of autobiographicalmemory in childhood and adolescence.