Edited by: Henrik Walter, Charité Universitätsmedizin, Germany
Reviewed by: Rebecca Watson, University of Glasgow, UK; Mario F. Juruena, University of São Paulo, Brazil
*Correspondence: Jonathan Greenberg, Department of Psychology and Zlotowski Center for Neuroscience, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Guzik Bldg (97)-Room 121, PO Box 653, Beer Sheva 84105, Israel e-mail:
This article was submitted to Emotion Science, a section of the journal Frontiers in Psychology.
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Imagine your negative mood after failing an exam or after receiving a rejection letter from a journal. One way to boost your mood after such an event might be to recall the high grade you have recently received, an article that has been accepted recently to a prestigious journal, or the warm hug you received from someone you love. It is your ability to recall these mood incongruent memories that may dictate the success in down-regulating the negative mood.
The ability to recall mood related memories has been studied as a part of the more general issue concerning the relation between mood and memory. A common way of exploring this relationship has been to compare the retrieval of memories that match the current mood (mood congruent recall) with retrieval of memories opposite in valence to the current mood (mood incongruent recall; for reviews see Blaney,
As the example above suggests, retrieving mood incongruent autobiographical memories seems of particular importance first and foremost due to its role in the regulation of emotion (see Isen et al.,
The question addressed in this work is what dictates the retrieval fluency of opposite mood memories? While previous research has suggested several correlates of emotional memory retrieval in general, such as personality traits of neuroticism and extraversion (Denkova et al.,
The plausibility of emotional engagement as a determining factor in the retrieval of mood incongruent memories may be illustrated by drawing an analogy between mood incongruent retrieval and task switching (see Greenberg and Meiran,
In Study 1, we examined the effect of emotional engagement on retrieval fluency of mood incongruent memories by manipulating emotional engagement in two different ways: providing instructions to engage vs. disengage emotionally and manipulating the duration of the clips used (long vs. short) to elicit the emotion. Our dependent measure was based on participants' performance on the Fluency of Autobiographical Memory (FAM) task (Sheppes and Meiran,
Sheppes and Meiran (
Study 1 examined the effects of emotional engagement on mood incongruent retrieval following sad and happy mood inductions in a set order (sad induction first, happy induction second). Study 2 used a similar procedure as Study 1 using only a happy mood induction, to control for potential order effects. Study 3 examined the effect of mood inductions on mood congruent rather than incongruent retrieval to assess whether effects of emotional engagement on autobiographical memory retrieval are specific to incongruent memories.
Participants were 42 undergraduate students studying at Ben-Gurion University (35 women, mean age 23.74,
Films were taken from Sheppes and Meiran (
Prior to each emotion induction, participants in all four groups received oral instructions which they were asked to execute while watching the upcoming film clip. The groups receiving engaging instructions were given the following instructions in Hebrew (the participants' native language): “Please attend carefully to the following film clip. If any emotions or feelings arise while watching, please allow yourself to fully experience these feelings, without distancing or blocking yourself from them in any way.” The groups receiving disengaging instructions were given the following instructions: “Please attend carefully to the following film clip, but watch it in a non-emotional manner. Try to view the film objectively and neutrally, paying attention to the facts but keeping yourself emotionally distant and uninvolved.” These instructions were given twice to each participant, once before each mood inducing film.
After signing an informed consent form, participants completed the following tasks: They completed a baseline self reported mood check of sadness, happiness, and general mood, then received emotional engagement/disengagement instructions, watched the sad mood film (short or long depending on the condition assigned to the group), completed another self reported mood check, performed the FAM task (of happy memories), received the same viewing instructions as before, watched a happy film (short or long depending on the condition assigned to the group), completed a final self reported mood check followed by a another FAM task (of sad memories), and were then debriefed. We did not counterbalance film clips primarily to standardize testing order in an effort to maximize statistical power.
The results were analyzed using Alpha = 0.05. In examining effects with a predicted direction (according to each of the three main hypotheses detailed in the Introduction section) we employed confirmatory one-tailed
A mixed model ANOVA was conducted on the time to generate the first memory, with the between-subjects independent variables being Instructions Type (engaging vs. disengaging) and Clip Length (long vs. short) and the within subjects variable Mood Induction Type (happy vs. sad). Using the appropriate MSes from the ANOVA, we examined the one-tailed contrast
According to the “happy valence hypothesis,” the time to generate the first opposite memory should be significantly longer following the happy film compared to the sad film. According to the “sad valence hypothesis” the opposite is predicted. In contrast to both of these hypotheses, results indicate that the time to generate the first opposite memory following the happy film (
We performed a Three-Way mixed ANOVA with the independent variables Instruction Type (engaging vs. disengaging) and Clip Length (long vs. short) as between subjects variables and Mood Induction Type (happy vs. sad) as the within subject variable. The total number of memories indexes the fluency of memories after the initial disengagement from the emotion, and thus, is a secondary rather than primary measure of emotional engagement. Nevertheless, according to the “engagement hypothesis” participants in emotionally engaging conditions are expected to recall fewer memories than participants in the emotionally disengaging conditions. Once again, results from emotionally engaging instructions support this hypothesis, as participants in the emotionally engaging instructions condition (
According to the “happy valence hypothesis,” fewer memories are expected to be recalled following the happy film compared to the sad film. According to the “sad valence hypothesis” the opposite is predicted. Results indicate that fewer mood incongruent memories were recalled after the happy film (
Thus, results from total number of memories recalled provide additional and converging support for the “engagement hypothesis” using emotionally engaging instructions, and additionally provide some evidence supporting the “happy valence hypothesis.”
Means are listed in Table
Engaging instructions | Happiness | 6.25 (0.91) | 3.95 (1.70) | 6.95 (1.32) |
Gen. mood | 6.80 (1.00) | 4.75 (1.45) | 7.30 (0.92) | |
Sadness | 2.65 (1.93) | 5.55 (1.93) | 2.10 (1.29) | |
Disengaging instructions | Happiness | 6.14 (1.42) | 5.10 (1.64) | 6.62 (1.36) |
Gen. mood | 6.57 (1.47) | 5.81 (1.40) | 6.90 (1.49) | |
Sadness | 2.90 (2.05) | 3.71 (2.08) | 2.38 (1.75) | |
Long clip | Happiness | 6.24 (0.94) | 3.95 (1.86) | 6.76 (1.48) |
Gen. mood | 6.76 (0.83) | 4.71 (1.45) | 7.29 (1.06) | |
Sadness | 2.62 (1.91) | 5.25 (2.34) | 2.00 (1.22) | |
Short clip | Happiness | 6.15 (1.42) | 5.15 (1.42) | 6.80 (1.20) |
Gen. mood | 6.60 (1.60) | 5.90 (1.33) | 6.90 (1.41) | |
Sadness | 2.95 (1.06) | 4.00 (1.89) | 2.50 (1.79) |
To check our manipulation, the main effect for Induction Type was examined and found to be significant [Wilks' Lambda = 0.21,
The MANOVA also yielded a significant interaction of Induction Type (pre-induction, sad induction, happy induction) × Instruction Type (engaging vs. non-engaging) [Wilks' Lambda = 0.66,
The third and final significant effect found in the MANOVA was that of Induction Type × Clip Length (short vs. long) [Wilks' Lambda = 0.66,
Thus, since participants who received emotionally engaging instructions had exhibited more than double the recall latency of the first opposite mood memory, and generated overall less opposite mood memories than participants who received emotionally disengaging instructions, results of the current study support the emotional engagement hypothesis, and suggest that high levels of emotional engagement hinder mood incongruent retrieval, compared to low levels of emotional engagement. Weaker support was found for the “happy valence hypothesis,” as participants overall recalled fewer opposite mood memories following a happy film compared to a sad film, yet this hypothesis was not supported using the first memory recall latency measure. No support was found for the “sad mood hypothesis.”
Manipulating emotional engagement through length of emotion eliciting film clips did not significantly influence mood incongruent retrieval. One possible
Results of Study 1 demonstrated that emotional engagement hindered mood incongruent autobiographical retrieval following both sad and happy film clips. Film order in Study 1was fixed (sad film first, happy film second) in an effort to maximize statistical power. It thus, may be claimed that performance on the FAM after the happy film (which came second) might have been affected by viewing the first (sad) film or by the recent recollection of happy memories. The aim of Study 2 was to provide a firmer base for the results obtained in Study 1 regarding the effects of emotional engagement on mood incongruent retrieval (i.e., the “engagement hypothesis”) by ruling out the possibility of such order effects via administering the FAM for mood incongruent memories following a happy film at the beginning of the experiment.
Participants were 37 undergraduate students studying at Ben-Gurion University (24 women, mean age 24.05,
The only film used was the longer version (5:19 min) of the happy film used in Study 1, from the Israeli standup comedy act “The Assi and Guri show.”
Self reported emotion ratings, FAM, and emotionally engaging and disengaging instructions were all identical to those in Study 1, yet were used only for a happy film.
The procedure was identical to that of Study 1, apart for the fact that the only film used was the happy film and the only FAM administered was that of sad memories.
A
In a similar
The fact that the current study obtained similar results to those obtained in Study 1 regarding emotional engagement following a happy mood induction, yet without previous experience with a sad mood induction or with retrieval of happy memories rule out order effects as an alternative account for the results of Study 1.
Means are listed in Table
Engaging instructions | Happiness | 6.11 (2.05) | 7.17 (1.54) |
Gen. mood | 6.11 (2.00) | 7.61 (1.61) | |
Sadness | 2.83 (2.15) | 2.22 (1.77) | |
Disengaging instructions | Happiness | 6.11 (1.24) | 6.79 (1.55) |
Gen. mood | 6.63 (1.38) | 7.11 (1.29) | |
Sadness | 2.21 (0.92) | 1.79 (1.23) |
The mood induction did not affect self reported mood checks of the two groups differently. This has been evident by the non-significant interaction between Induction (pre-induction vs. happy induction) and group (engaging instructions vs. disengaging instructions) [
Self reported mood checks require that participants rate the intensity of each emotion on a scale ranging from 1 to 9. The fact that the groups differed in FAM performance but not differ in self-reported mood checks provides evidence that emotional engagement and emotion intensity are separate and independent from one another. Although high emotional engagement
Results of Studies 1 and 2 demonstrated that high levels of emotional engagement hinder mood incongruent autobiographical retrieval. The aim of Study 3 was to validate that this hindrance is specific to mood incongruent autobiographical retrieval rather than a hindrance to autobiographical retrieval in general. To this end, participants received emotionally engaging or disengaging instructions and viewed emotion eliciting films as in Study 1, yet the FAM measure was used to examine mood
Participants were 28 undergraduate students studying at Ben-Gurion University (14 women, mean age 25.14,
The films used were the longer versions of the sad (story of a soldier killed in military action) and happy (the Israeli standup comedy act “The Assi and Guri show”) films used in Study 1.
Self reported emotion ratings, FAM, and emotionally engaging and disengage instructions were all identical to those in Study 1, with the exception of retrieving mood congruent rather than incongruent memories (i.e., recalling sad memories following the sad film and happy memories following the happy film).
The procedure was identical to that of Study 1, as was film order (sad film first, happy film second).
A Two Way ANOVA was conducted with Instruction Type (engaging vs. disengaging) and Mood Induction Type (sad vs. happy) as the independent variables and time to generate the first memory as the dependent variable. According to the hypothesis that high emotional engagement hinders autobiographical memory retrieval in general, participants receiving emotionally engaging instructions should take longer to generate the first mood congruent memory. This hypothesis was not supported, as no differences were found between emotional engagement conditions [
A similar ANOVA was conducted with Total Number of Memories as the dependent variable. Once again, no support was found for the hypothesis that high emotional engagement hinders autobiographical memory retrieval in general, as no differences were found between emotional engagement conditions [
A main effect was found for Mood Induction Type [
Means are listed in Table
Engaging instructions | Happiness | 5.57 (1.16) | 3.07 (1.54) | 7.29 (1.44) |
Gen. mood | 6.43 (1.50) | 3.21 (1.19) | 7.5 (1.29) | |
Sadness | 3.07 (1.64) | 6.86 (1.51) | 2.86 (1.70) | |
Disengaging instructions | Happiness | 6.07 (1.43) | 4.29 (1.90) | 6.79 (1.25) |
Gen. mood | 6.29 (1.54) | 4.36 (1.74) | 7 (1.24) | |
Sadness | 2.29 (1.54) | 4 (2.15) | 2.79 (1.72) |
A significant main effect was found for Induction Type [Wilks' Lambda = 0.167,
The MANOVA also yielded a significant interaction of Induction Type (pre-induction, sad induction, happy induction) × Instruction Type (engaging vs. non-engaging) [Wilks' Lambda = 0.52,
Overall, findings of this study clearly rule out the possibility that high levels of emotional engagement hinder autobiographical retrieval in general, and support the claim that high levels of engagement specifically hinder mood incongruent retrieval. Additionally, results suggest that a happy mood may facilitate recollection of more mood congruent memories than a sad mood, although mood does not influence recall latency of the first mood congruent memory.
In this work, we examined several hypotheses concerning the influence of mood on the fluency of retrieving autobiographical memories opposite to the current mood. According to the “sad valence hypotheses,” fluency of recalling memories opposite to the current mood is expected to be impaired following a sad film but not a happy film (based on Sheppes and Meiran,
Partial support was also found for the “happy valence hypothesis.” In Study 1 fewer mood incongruent memories were generated following a happy film compared to a sad film, and in Study 3, more mood-congruent memories were generated following a happy film compared to a sad film. Mood valence did not affect recall latency of the first memory. The fact that being in a happy mood resulted in fewer mood incongruent memories and more mood congruent memories is rather logical, as individuals in a happy mood are highly motivated to maintain this mood and may be reluctant to recall opposite mood memories (see e.g., Handley et al.,
Findings of the current work regarding emotional engagement support the analogy proposed in the Introduction between mood incongruent retrieval and task switching (Kiesel et al.,
Various conditions have been found to affect mood incongruent retrieval (see Singer and Salovey,
The current work may bear implications regarding the field of emotion regulation. Although recalling memories opposite in valence to the current mood has been regarded as an effective means of mood regulation (Isen et al.,
An additional possible contribution of this study concerns the FAM as a measuring tool in the study of emotion. Results of the current work indicate that although the FAM has originally been introduced as a measure of sadness (Sheppes and Meiran,
This work was partly supported by a research grant to the second author from the Israel Science Foundation.
The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
1Although this analysis could have been performed in a repeated measures ANOVA, a MANOVA seemed more appropriate, as it may serve as an alternative with a decreased risk of assumption violation (see O'Brien and Kaiser,