Exploring the Nature of Traumatic Memory Combining Clinical Knowledge with Laboratory Methods

• Published in: Journal of aggression, maltreatment & trauma Vol. 4; no. 2; pp. 9 - 31
• Main Authors: van der Kolk, Bessel A., Hopper, James W., Osterman, Janet E.
• Format: Journal Article Conference Proceeding
• Language: English
• Published: Binghamton, NY Taylor & Francis Group 12.06.2001; Haworth Press
• Subjects: Adult and adolescent clinical studies; Anxiety disorders. Neuroses; awareness during anesthesia; Biological and medical sciences; Medical sciences; Memory; Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; traumatic memories; Human; Posttraumatic syndrome; Awareness; Dissociative disorder; Anxiety disorder; Autobiographical memory; General anesthesia; Cognition; Trauma; Personality disorder; Stress; Life events; Information processing; Recall
• ISSN: 1092-6771; 1545-083X
• DOI: 10.1300/J146v04n02_02

For over 100 years clinicians have observed and described the unusual nature of traumatic memories. It has been repeatedly and consistently observed that these memories are characterized by fragmentary and intense sensations and affects, often with little or no verbal narrative content. Yet, possibly because traumatic memories cannot be precipitated under laboratory conditions, the organization of traumatic memories has received little systematic scientific investigation. In our laboratory we have developed an instrument, the Traumatic Memory Inventory (TMI), which systematically assesses the ways that memories of traumatic experience are organized and retrieved over time. In this article we report findings from our third study using the TMI, of 16 subjects who had the traumatic experience of awakening from general anesthesia during surgery. We assessed changes in traumatic memory characteristics over time and differences between memories of subjects with and without current Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Our findings suggest the need for more rigorous methods for the assessment of the evolution of traumatic memories. In order to develop a comprehensive and integrated understanding of the nature of traumatic memory, we need to combine careful clinical observations with repli-cable laboratory methods, including those of cognitive science and neuroscience.