Initial research viewed OGM as a trait-like cognitive style that would be resistant to change. Studies repeatedly concluded that OGM did not only persist after reducing symptoms of depression or PTSD, but that this type of memory retrieval remained a vulnerability factor for recurrence of symptoms. By the year 2000, researchers shifted their focus to view memory retrieval styles as malleable instead of fixed, and the concept of memory specificity training was introduced. Based on mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT), Williams, et al. (2000) found that this intervention effectively reduced OGM and symptoms of depression as compared to a control group. Though MBCT was not developed as a memory-specificity training intervention, the core idea of MBCT is awareness. This type of therapy focuses on teaching the person how to be more aware of his/her environment, allowing memories to be encoded at a higher specificity, and to be more aware of his/her own thought processes, allowing the person to recognize when his/her mind wanders and how to come back to the present situation. The finding that an already developed intervention program could reduce OGM was promising and galvanized further research on intervention programs for OGM. In effort to develop an intervention program directly targeting memory specificity improvement, Raes, Williams, and Hermans (2009) developed the MEmory Specificity Training (MEST) intervention. In their initial study, ten inpatient women experiencing depression participated in this group-based intervention over the course of four weeks. The group met once a week in one-hour sessions, where they learned about OGM and practiced recalling specific memories. The initial session presented research on OGM and discussed examples of specific memories, while the last three sessions focused on recalling multiple specific memories for a particular cue word. The last session also included a metacognitive component, focusing on how to recognize when thoughts are becoming too general. Homework was given after every session to promote further experiences recalling specific memories. While this initial study did not include a control group, the women showed dramatic improvements in reducing OGM. Additionally, the participants also displayed reductions in rumination and feelings of hopelessness, independent of reduced depressive symptoms. Given the methodological issues of Raes et al.'s study, another research group tested MEST under more stringent conditions. Using random assignment, a control group, and follow-up testing, Neshat-Doost et al. (2013) corroborated the initial findings that MEST is successful in reducing OGM and promoting more specific memory recall. While the MEST intervention group and the control group did not differ significantly in depression post-training, the MEST intervention group displayed a significant decrease in depressive symptoms at the two-month follow up, whereas the control group remained unchanged. As in the initial study by Raes et al., changes in OGM and depressive symptoms were found to be independent of each other, though reduced OGM was correlated with reduced depression. These successes showing that OGM can be reduced through intervention is significant. As OGM is thought to be part of the core mechanism predicting the course and maintenance of depression and PTSD, altering this cognitive style could prevent recurrence of symptoms. However, research on interventions targeting memory specificity is in an early stage, and more research will be necessary to see how long the effects last post-intervention.
Overgeneral autobiographical memory
Mirrored-self misidentification
Emotional lateralization
Fragmentation of memory
Episodic memory
Psychological resistance
Psychological resilience
Associative memory 