Characterizing the contributions of cue familiarity for the retrieval of autobiographical memories

Abstract Retrieving an autobiographical memory requires a cue to initiate processes related to accessing and then elaborating on a past personal experience. Prior work has shown that the familiarity of a cue can influence the autobiographical memory retrieval process. Extending on this work, we tested how different aspects of cue familiarity—i.e., amount of past exposure and amount of semantic knowledge associated with the cue concept—can affect how we access and remember in detail autobiographical memories. In Experiment 1, we measured reaction times to access and retrieve memories in response to cue words. In Experiment 2 we examined the details with which participants described memories in response to cues. For both experiments, participants provided estimates of lifetime exposure and semantic knowledge associated with each cue. In Experiment 1, we found lifetime exposure, independently of estimates of semantic knowledge, led to quicker memory access and in Experiment 2, we found both lifetime exposure and semantic knowledge interactively enhanced the ability to described detailed memories. These results provide new evidence that distinct features of familiar cues—lifetime exposure and semantic knowledge—differently contribute to how autobiographical memories are retrieved and described.