1. Introduction. An Obsession with the Past -- 2. A 'Brief' History of the Psychology of Autobiographical Memory -- 3. The Content and Organisation of Autobiographical Memory -- 4. The Functions of Autobiographical Memory -- 5. Conclusions. What is Autobiographical Memory?.

"Professor Sotgiu, an active autobiographical memory researcher, provides in a scholarly, clear fashion what his title implies. As an up-to-date monograph for general readers, more specialized researchers, and upper-level students, his book has no equal. Heated controversies are fairly presented. A broad range of historical figures share pages with more recent researchers to produce a unique and welcomed review." - David Rubin, Duke University, USA "This book is refreshing in contextualizing this contemporary field in its 140-year history. Readers are guided down a fascinating path to explore the intellectual evolution of humans' obsession with their personal pasts. By presenting a comprehensive overview of both pioneering and current research, Sotgiu provides a carefully reasoned exploration of the intricacies of recalling and sharing the early, happy, meaningful and difficult events that make up a life." - Susan Bluck, University of Florida, USA "Rigorous, clear and pleasant to read, this book offers us a model of effective communication of science." - Bernard Rimé, Université Catholique de Louvain, Belgium This book provides an overview of the key theoretical and empirical issues relating to autobiographical memory: the extraordinarily complex psychological activity that enables us to retrieve, relive and reappraise our pasts. The first part of the book retraces the genesis and historical development of the psychology of autobiographical memory, from the pioneering contributions of Francis Galton, Victor Henri and Sigmund Freud, to the most recent research in the fields of cognitivism, cognitive science and neuroscience. The author then moves on to two key topics in the contemporary panorama: the content and organisation of autobiographical memory (what we remember from our lives and how we link together specific segments of our personal pasts) and the functions of autobiographical memory (why we remember our pasts). This book will provide a valuable scholarly overview for cognitive psychologists and an authoritative critical introduction to the field for students and scholars from across psychology, philosophy, literary criticism, sociology and law. Igor Sotgiu is Associate Professor of General Psychology at the University of Bergamo, Italy. His research interests focus on autobiographical memory, emotion and well-being.