Mental Health Research and Treatment Center, Faculty of Psychology, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Bochum, Germany.
Memory. 2020 Oct;28(9):1157-1172. doi: 10.1080/09658211.2020.1822413. Epub 2020 Sep 27.
Positive involuntary mental imagery occurs frequently in daily life but evidence as to its functions and importance is largely indirect. The current study investigated a method to induce positive involuntary imagery in daily life, which would allow direct testing of its impact. An unselected student sample (= 80) completed a single session of a positive imagery cognitive bias modification (CBM) paradigm, which involved listening to and imagining brief positive imagery scripts. Participants then recorded any involuntary memories of the imagined training scenarios in a three-day diary before returning to the lab for a follow-up assessment. Participants were randomised to imagine the scenarios in either an emotionally involved or emotionally detached manner, providing a test of the role of emotion in the subsequent experience of involuntary memories. Participants reported experiencing involuntary memories of the training scenarios in their daily life, but the number recorded did not differ between the experimental conditions. Exploratory analyses suggested that more vivid imagery and recall testing were associated with a greater number of involuntary memories. The study highlights the potential of the imagery CBM paradigm to further our understanding of the functions and potential importance of positive involuntary mental imagery in daily life.
积极的无意识心理意象在日常生活中经常出现，但关于其功能和重要性的证据在很大程度上是间接的。本研究调查了一种在日常生活中诱发积极无意识意象的方法，这将允许直接测试其影响。一个未选中的学生样本（=80）完成了一次积极意象认知偏见修正（CBM）范式的单一疗程，其中包括听和想象简短的积极意象脚本。然后，参与者在三天的日记中记录了任何对想象训练场景的无意识记忆，然后返回实验室进行后续评估。参与者被随机分配以情感投入或情感超脱的方式想象场景，这为情绪在随后的无意识记忆体验中的作用提供了测试。参与者报告在日常生活中经历了对训练场景的无意识记忆，但在实验条件之间记录的数量没有差异。探索性分析表明，更生动的意象和回忆测试与更多的无意识记忆有关。该研究强调了意象 CBM 范式在进一步了解日常生活中积极无意识心理意象的功能和潜在重要性方面的潜力。
