Memory for the pleasant as compared with the unpleasant.

Abstract

51 students recorded the pleasant experiences which they had during the preceding three weeks, then the ones. Three weeks later the recordings were repeated; this time they were asked to recall the earlier lists. 45% of the pleasure items (834) and 31% of the unpleasant ones (698) were recalled, the difference being statistically reliable. The author believes that agreeable events will be more subject to review and exercise than the disagreeable, and that memory for events will be modified in terms of activities undertaken to relieve the unpleasantness. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)