Autobiographical Processing Primes Semantic Memory Production on the Category Exemplar Generation Task: The Role of Self-Referential Processing

Research has shown that recalling autobiographical memories primes semantic memory retrieval on conceptual implicit memory tasks (e.g., category exemplar generation). It has been argued that such autobiographical-to-semantic memory priming reflects the functional/interactive nature of autobiographical and semantic memory. In this study, we examined how the activation of self-knowledge, an abstract form of autobiographical memory, facilitated semantic memory retrieval on a category exemplar generation task. In Experiment 1, participants in a self-reference condition judged how words might relate to themselves (e.g., jazz), and in a semantic processing condition, they made word-familiarity judgments (e.g., broccoli). They were then given a category exemplar generation task (e.g., name types of music, vegetables). The results of this experiment showed that self-knowledge processing led to significant priming on the generation task, and that this priming did not differ from that of semantic processing. Experiment 2 replicated these findings along with an added event recall condition, which did not differ from the other processing conditions. Experiment 3 replicated the findings of Experiment 2 using a depth of processing manipulation. It is argued that the results support the notion that the activation of abstract autobiographical knowledge can facilitate semantic processing.