Life review with older women: an intervention to reduce depression and improve autobiographical memory

Background and aims: As life expectancy
rises worldwide and the population grows older, psychopathology
in older adults becomes a significant public
health concern and intervention methods acquire renewed
importance. The aim of the present study was to
assess the efficacy of Life Review as an intervention strategy
in working with older women with depressive symptoms,
specifically through promotion of the specificity of
autobiographical memories. Methods: Twenty-two participants
were randomly assigned to experimental or control
conditions. Intervention consisted of four individual
sessions of Life Review, structured along 14 questions
aimed at prompting autobiographical memory specificity.
Participants in the control condition did not receive
intervention. Results: Results indicated a significant
change in the experimental group, appearing as the
reduction of depressive symptoms (t(20)=3.58, p<0.05)
and an increase in life satisfaction (t(20)=-3.83, p<0.05),
as well as a significant increase in the specificity
(t(20)=-3.46, p<0.05) and positivity (t(20)=-4.23,
p<0.05) of autobiographical memories. All variables
reached high effect sizes, with an effect size of r=0.64 regarding
depressive symptoms. Conclusions: Results
suggest that Life Review is a valuable tool for use with
older adults, and that promotion of specific autobiographical
memories is a mechanism through which the
strategy attains its effectiveness
This work was partially funded by a grant (ref. SFRH/BD/30226/2006) from the Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia, Portugal.