Flashbulb memory (FBM) has been defined as a vivid and detailed memory for the circumstances under which one first learned of a consequential and emotionally involving event. The present study aimed to assess a FBM for expected events, i.e., the death of Pope John Paul II, across four different religious groups (i.e., Catholic, Orthodox, No Religion, and Other Religion). Furthermore, the study addressed to test the extent to which the FBM features and the emotional and social FBM determinants vary as a function of the importance given to the event within each religious group. Results showed that all participants, regardless of their religious affiliation, exhibited a consistent memory of the details related to the reception context of the expected news. Additionally, the results emphasized the effect of the religious affiliation on the FBM features, and on the variables traditionally associated with FBM. Compared to the other religious groups, Catholic participants exhibited the highest FBM Consistency for the Pope’s death, and they were the most emotionally and socially involved in the event. Implications for the FBM debate are discussed.

An individual’s ability to discriminate lies from truth is far from accurate, and is poorly related to an individual’s confidence in his/her detection. Both law enforcement and non-professional interviewers base their evaluations of truthfulness on experiential criteria, including emotional and expressive features, cognitive complexity, and paraverbal aspects of interviewees’ reports. The current experimental study adopted two perspectives of investigation: the first is aimed at assessing the ability of naïve judges to detect lies/truth by watching a videotaped interview; the second takes into account the interviewee’s detectability as a liar or as telling the truth by a sample of judges. Additionally, this study is intended to evaluate the criteria adopted to support lie/truth detection and relate them with accuracy and confidence of detection. Results showed that judges’ detection ability was moderately accurate and associated with a moderate individual sense of confidence, with a slightly better accuracy for truth detection than for lie detection. Detection accuracy appeared to be negatively associated with detection confidence when the interviewee was a liar, and positively associated when the interviewee was a truth-teller. Furthermore, judges were found to support lie detection through criteria concerning emotional features, and to sustain truth detection by taking into account the cognitive complexity and the paucity of expressivemanifestations related with the interviewee’s report. The present findings have implications for the judicial decision on witnesses’ credibility.

Integrating theories of attachment and maladaptive rumination, the present study tested the hypothesis that Emotional Intelligence (EI) abilities mediate relationships between insecure adult attachment orientations (Anxiety and Avoidance) and dysfunctional rumination (Brooding and Depression-related). The results showed that attachment anxiety and avoidance were positively associated with brooding and depression-related rumination, and EI abilities mediated these associations. Emotion perception and management abilities partially mediated the relationship of anxious attachment with brooding rumination, and fully mediated the relationship between avoidant attachment and brooding rumination. Using and understanding emotion abilities fully mediated links between anxious and avoidant attachment and depression related rumination. The results highlight the role of emotion-information processing in the adoption of maladaptive rumination in insecure attachment.

In the present paper we aimed to show that competition for resources between postemotional processes and the execution of a cognitive task will result in two possible effects: (1) an impairment of the cognitive task in the short run and (2) an elongation of intrusions and rumination in the long run. The outcome of this competition is influenced by the interaction of the modality (verbal vs. visuospatial) of cognitive tasks run in the aftermath of an emotional experience and the nature (verbal vs. visuospatial) of the same experience. Non-clinical participants were given a working memory task (OSPAN vs. an analog Visual task) before and after the presentation of negative vs. neutral material (a novel excerpt in Experiment 1 and a video clip in Experiment 2). Intrusions and rumination were measured after a 24-h delay. Rumination was also assessed immediately after the experimental induction. Results showed that exposure to verbal negative material impaired verbal performance (Experiment 1); by contrast, exposure to visual negative material impaired both verbal and visuospatial performance (Experiment 2). Intrusions were only affected by the emotional valence of the original experience, while performing a visuospatial task resulted in enhanced rumination only after exposure to verbal emotional material. The findings of both experiments suggest that emotional processing spreads over time in balance with ongoing cognitive activities, and, in such a balance, the visuospatial processing mode tends to prevail over verbal engagements.

Participants who are asked to simulate amnesia for a mock crime have a weaker memory for this event when they have to give up their role as a feigner, than those who are not asked to feign memory loss. According to the source monitoring framework (SMF), this memory-undermining effect of simulating amnesia for a crime would be due to misattribution of the right source of information. However, we know that the content of self-generated information (e.g., feigned version of the crime) might be preserved and recognised over time as a result of elaborative cognitive processing. In the present study, we aimed to contrast these two explanations. We showed participants a mock crime video and we instructed them to either feign amnesia (simulators) or confess the mock crime (confessors). Next, a free recall memory test was administered. After one week, participants were asked to perform a personalised source monitoring task using the autobiographical Implicit Association Test (aIAT). As predicted, we found that simulators were able to discriminate the content of their self-generated feigned story of the crime from the original version. Moreover, simulators were quicker than confessors at the aIAT task. Practical and theoretical implications of our results are discussed.

Several studies have shown that the conceptual schemata we have guide the way we relate to the world. On the basis of this perspective, it is important to try to understand what individuals think of, and know about, emotional regulation, i.e., which naive theories they have about it. The study aimed to investigate, by means of open-ended questions, the naive conceptions that 141 adolescents between 16 and 19 years of age have about emotional regulation: which emotions need to be regulated, which strategies may be involved in the regulation process, which functions regulation has, and in which contexts it is active, whether it is conceptualised as an ability that can be enhanced, or, vice versa, as a dispositional trait, and which factors may influence its enhancement. The study was expected to enable us to see to what extent naive theories of regulation exhibit common-sense shared biases. The answers provided to the open-ended questions were analyzed through content analysis, with a category system built on the basis of both the sample’s responses and the theoretical aims of the study. Results overall showed a significant frequency of various biases in the naive concept of emotional regulation. More specifically, for most participants regulation is necessary especially for negative emotions, is implemented through the strategy of suppression (e.g., of emotion), is useful for oneself (rather than for others), is functional for one's well being and to solve problems, especially interpersonal ones occurring in the school context, and is an ability that, although influenced by personality, can be enhanced, especially on the basis of experience. Contrary to the hypotheses, only a few gender differences were obtained.

In two studies, we assessed the construct validity of the Italian version of the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT) v2.0. In Study 1, we administered the MSCEIT together with measures of crystallized and fluid intelligence, personality, and affect. In Study 2, we administered the MSCEIT together with indices of dispositional coping, emotion regulation strategies, alexithymia, state-trait anxiety, depression, and depressive rumination. We evaluated the factorial structure of the MSCEIT with a Confirmatory Factor Analysis model using data combined from Study 1 and 2. The results confirm that the MSCEIT-Italian version satisfactorily discriminates EI ability from crystallized and fluid intelligence, personality, and affect, and exhibits significant correlations with various psychological well-being criteria. Furthermore, data from both studies confirm that the factorial structure of MSCEIT is consistent with the theory on which it is based, although it was difficult to rule out alternative structures.

Flashbulb memories (FBMs) are defined as detailed memories for the reception context in which people first heard of a public and emotionally relevant event. For many years researchers have been debating whether FBMs can be considered a special class of emotional memories, or whether they suffer the same fate as ordinary autobiographical formations. The debate on the real existence of this special class of memories reflects the difficulty of establishing their accuracy. Three indices have been defined as proxies for FBM accuracy: specificity of recalled details, individuals’ confidence in their memory, and memory consistency over time. However, all approaches to FBM assessment have been based on explicit selfreport measures. In two studies we aimed to detect FBMs for two emotional public events, by simultaneously employing explicit traditional FBM measures and implicit measures based on the autobiographical Implicit Association Test (aIAT). Jointly considered, the results from the two studies showed that the implicit measures were able to discriminate a FBM, and appeared significantly associated with explicit traditional measures of FBM Specificity, Confidence, and Consistency. Both explicit and implicit assessments concurred to correctly estimate a FBM. Implications for the FBM debate are discussed.

The main aim of the current study was to provide evidence regarding the relationship between the emotions communication ability - in terms of Emotional Intelligence (EI) - and the psychological well-being. Additionally, the study explored the moderation effect of sex on this relationship. Participants filled in the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT), General Health Questionnaire (GHQ), Psychological General Well-being Index (PGWBI), and Depression Questionnaire (DQ). Results showed the moderator role of sex in the relationship between EI and psychological well-being. Furthermore, the associations between EI and psychological well-being measures were generally higher for men than for women, supporting the idea that sex needs to be taken into account when considering EI measures. The potential helpfulness of EI and emotions communications ability in promoting mental health is discussed.

Eyewitnesses typically talk about the crimes they have seen. The different ways in which a witness talks can also influence later recollections. Indeed individuals can talk about crimes in order to cope with their negative emotions or to provide a detailed report. In the current study we investigated the role of factual vs. emotional retelling on memory accuracy of individuals who have eyewitnessed and discussed an emotional event. Participants were shown a video in which a quarrel between strangers was evident, then they were assigned to one out of three experimental conditions, i.e., (a) talking in group about emotional reactions to the video, (b) talking in group about factual details of the video; (c) completing an unrelated task. We employed a novel procedure in groups that ensured more ecological validity; retelling with other co-eyewitnesses in fact resembles real life situation. Eyewitnesses’ memory for details of the video was assessed immediately before the retelling session and after a short delay. Results showed that while factual retelling prevents memory impairment over time, emotional retelling determined less detailed memories. Implications for forensic assessments of eyewitness’ memory were discussed.

School days can be a difficult time especially when students are faced with subjects which require motivational investment along with cognitive effort, such as mathematics and sciences. In the present study, we investigated the effects of teachers’ Emotional Intelligence (EI) ability, self-efficacy, and emotional states and students’ self-esteem, perceptions of ability and metacognitive beliefs in predicting school achievement. We hypothesized that the level of teacher EI ability would moderate the impact of students’ self-perceptions and beliefs regarding their achievements in mathematics and sciences. Students from Italian junior high schools (N = 338) and their math teachers (N = 12) were involved in the study and a multilevel approach was employed. Findings showed that that teachers’ EI has a positive role in promoting students’ achievement, by enhancing the effects of students’ self-perceptions of ability and self-esteem. These results have implications for the implementation of intervention programs on the emotional, motivational, and metacognitive correlates of studying and learning behaviour.

In the present paper, we aimed to provide evidence in support of the idea tested in a recent study by Lanciano and colleagues that flashbulb memories (FBMs) are a special class of autobiographical memories that can be assessed through the autobiographical implicit association test (aIAT). FBMs and event memories (EMs) for the news of the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI were evaluated in three samples of churchgoer Catholic, non-churchgoer Catholic and Evangelical Italian participants through the traditional self-report measures (specificity/accuracy, confidence, consistency) and aIAT indices. Results confirmed the strength of the association between FBM and true information. The aIAT effect was stronger for FBMs than for EM details, and for Catholic respondents who were the group most concerned by the original event. Furthermore, the use of implicit measures for memory assessment concurs with the traditional self-report indices of FBMs. The present evidence supports the idea that FBMs are special autobiographical memories which remain detailed, certain and consistent over time.

The present study tested the incremental validity of an ability measure of Emotional Intelligence (EI) in predicting academic achievement in undergraduate students, controlling for cognitive abilities and personality traits. Academic achievement has been conceptualized in terms of the exam number, the Grade Point Average, and the study time taken to prepare for each exam. Additionally, gender differences were taken into account in these relationships. Participants filled in the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT), the Raven’s Advanced Progressive Matrices (RAPM), the reduced version of the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ-R), and academic achievement measures. Results showed that EI abilities were positively related to academic achievement indices, such as the exam number and the Grade Point Average (GPA); Total EI ability and the Perceiving branch were negatively associated with the study time spent preparing for the exams. Furthermore, EI ability adds a percentage of incremental variance with respect to cognitive ability and personality variables in explaining scholastic success. The magnitude of the associations between EI abilities and academic achievement measures was generally higher for men than for women. Jointly considered, the present findings support the incremental validity of the MSCEIT and provide positive indications of the importance of EI in students' academic development. The helpfulness of EI training in the context of academic institutions is discussed.

Studio empirico sull’applicazione dell’analisi per tratti latenti al ricordo dell’attacco terroristico dell’11 settembre 2001. L’ipotesi alla base del lavoro è che il ricordo flashbulb del contesto di apprendimento della notizia sia una formazione altamente integrata nello spazio della memoria autobiografica. I dati relativi al ricordo dell’11 settembre mostrano che il modello per tratti latenti ha un buon adattamento se applicato alla misurazione dei ricordi fotografici.

In seguito ad eventi di natura emozionale gli individui avvertono il bisogno di reiterare la propria esperienza al fine di elaborare le esperienze vissute attribuendo loro un significato logico e coerente. La letteratura sulle narrazioni emozionali sostiene che la costruzione di una narrazione significativa e coerente permette agli individui di risolvere la discrepanza tra la nuova informazione emozionale e i propri sistemi di credenze, producendo benefici psico-fisici sugli individui. Obiettivo del presente studio è investigare l’effetto della valenza dell’evento emozionale sulla struttura delle narrazioni e di esplorarne l’evoluzione temporale. Lo studio adotta un disegno 3x7 misto, con la Valenza dell’evento (Positiva vs. Negativa vs. Neutra) come fattore between subjects e il Tempo (7 giorni di narrazione) come fattore within subjects. Le variabili dipendenti sono gli indici di complessità e di coerenza della struttura narrativa. A 62 studenti universitari viene chiesto di narrare per 7 giorni un evento emozionale positivo vs. negativo vs. neutro. I risultati mostrano come, immediatamente dopo l’evento, le narrazioni neutre risultano più comprensibili e coerenti rispetto alle narrazioni emozionali, mentre le narrazioni negative risultano essere quelle più complesse e incoerenti. Con il ripetersi delle narrazioni nei giorni successivi, rispetto alle narrazioni neutre, le narrazioni emozionali diventano sempre più comprensibili e coerenti, e questo effetto è maggiormente evidente nelle narrazioni negative. Il presente studio mostra quindi come la struttura delle narrazioni emozionali evolva positivamente nel tempo, in quanto queste passano da uno stato di incoerenza e complessità verso una maggiore coerenza e semplificazione.

What do we remember following an emotionally charged event? The assessment of memory characteristics for an emotional event represents one of the most challenging issues in the domain of autobiographical memory. Literature of flashbulb memories (FBMs) provides a crucial contribution on this issue: Following an emotional and unexpected public event, people remember not only central details of the episode, but also irrelevant, peripheral and idiosyncratic details of the reception context in which they learned of the news. The present study was set up to assess the factorial structure (samples 1 and 2) and convergent validity (sample 2) of an FBM checklist, an instrument designed to measure Flashbulb-like features of memories for emotional private events. Factorial analyses account for an oblique two-factor solution – FBM Specificity and Confidence – while correlational analyses support the convergent validity of this instrument. Practical implications are discussed, especially for the credibility assessment of witnesses of emotional events in forensic settings.

The emotional intensity of an event is a significant predictor for vividness of event memory. Nevertheless, during the last few decades, there has been some confusion in literature as to whether emotional events are poorly or well retained. It is important to consider that not all details of emotional events are equally remembered: Memory for the central details seems to be relatively good, whereas memory for peripheral details appears to be relatively poor. The aim of the present study was to investigate the accuracy of central vs. peripheral details of an emotional event in a natural but controlled context: the emotional event is a simulated life event, the central and peripheral details of the emotional event were controlled. Indeed previous research work was simply based on the induction of an emotional state in an experimental context and subsequent assessment of a performance memory task. Results showed that, following an emotional event, individuals provided a vivid and accurate recollection not only of the central gist of the event, but also of the context and peripheral details. Implications for literature on emotional autobiographical memories were discussed

Following an emotional experience, individuals are confronted with the persistence of ruminative thoughts which disturb the undertaking of other activities. In the present study we intended to provide an experimental test for the idea that experiencing a negative emotion triggers a ruminative process which drains Working Memory (WM) resources normally devoted to other tasks. Undergraduate participants of high vs. low WM capacity were administered the OSPAN test as a measure of availability of WM resources, preceding and following the presentation of negative emotional vs. neutral material. Rumination was assessed immediately after the second OSPAN session and at a 24-hour delay. Results showed that both the individual’s WM capacity and the emotional valence of the material influenced WM performance and the persistence of ruminative thoughts. Following the experimental induction, rumination mediated the relationship between the negative emotional state and the concomitant WM performance. Based on these results we argued that ruminative processes deplete WM resources, making them less available for concurrent tasks; in addition rumination tends to persist over time. These findings have implications for the theoretical modelling of the long-term effects of emotions in both daily-life and clinical contexts.

Rassegna sull’intelligenza emotiva applicata al contesto forense. Dopo una descrizione dei principali modelli teorici sull’intelligenza emotiva, con particolare riferimento al modello dei quattro rami di Salovey e Mayer, 1990, vengono descritte le principali applicazioni del costrutto in ambito psicogiuridico, tra cui la formazione di una eccellente professionalità forense; la negoziazione in situazioni conflittuali; la formulazione di verdetti; la leadership in tribunale; le condotte devianti e criminali. Sul modello anglosassone, il lavoro propone anche nel contesto italiano l’insegnamento dell’IE nei corsi di laurea e/o post laurea in ambito giuridico, la sensibilizzazione all’educazione emozionale come abilità di base per diventare un professionista di successo, la creazione di programmi di intervento per devianti basati sullo sviluppo delle competenze emotive.

While it is well established that individuals with psychopathic traits have a marked deficit in affectivity and empathy, the extent to which empathic perspective taking can play a role in psychopathic traits and self-conscious emotions has yet to be studied in detail. Using a community sample (N = 736), the current study investigated the relationship between psychopathic traits, moral-based emotions, and empathic perspective taking ability, by exploring the effect of perspective taking in moderating the link between psychopathic traits and self-conscious emotions. Results revealed that the three components of psychopathy – self-centered impulsivity, fearless dominance, and coldheartedness - yielded different relations with empathic perspective taking and self-conscious emotions. Moreover, perspective taking ability moderated above all the relationship between psychopathic traits (impulsivity and fearless dominance) and guilt, shame and detachment. Summarising, our findings suggest that if psychopathic traits are related to an overall deficit in self-conscious emotions and perspective taking, then promoting perspective taking ability might lead to an enhancement of pro-social moral self-conscious emotions.

Le emozioni insorgono molto rapidamente, ma il loro decadimento può essere lento e protrarsi a lungo dopo il verificarsi dell’evento che le ha scatenate. Ciò che resta è un «residuo» emotivo, che può in ogni momento riattivare l’emozione stessa. La rievocazione dell’emozione e dei pensieri a essa collegati può avvenire a livello intrapersonale, in forma di pensieri ruminativi. La ruminazione è una modalità di regolazione a lungo termine delle emozioni caratterizzata in generale da pensieri ripetitivi, involontari e difficili da eliminare. I modelli esplicativi proposti nel capitolo si focalizzano sui diversi processi e meccanismi sottostanti e le diverse funzioni che la ruminazione assolve nel più vasto processo di regolazione. Quello della ruminazione è un concetto multidimensionale, strettamente associato ad altri costrutti coinvolti nel processo di regolazione delle emozioni, e con cui presenta similitudini e differenze. Un’analisi delle differenze individuali nella ruminazione può fornire una chiave di lettura per lo studio delle più ampie differenze in termini di modalità di regolazione delle emozioni.

Flashbulb memories (FBMs) have been defined as vivid and detailed memory of a reception context under which one first heard of a public and unexpected emotional event. One of the issues still open for research on FBMs is to understand whether this latent construct has to be conceptualised as a continuum with other autobiographical memories, or whether it represents a special cluster of memories. This theoretical distinction has some implications for the measurement of the phenomenon, that could be assessed by a dimensional or categorical (taxonic) model. The current study attempted to provide an empirical answer to the problem of FBM measurement, by adopting a taxometric analysis. The main strength of these analyses is to treat taxonic and dimensional models as two competing hypotheses and to evaluate the relative support for each of them. Taxometric analyses were applied to FBM data for the Pope’s death, and results supported the taxonic structure of FBMs.

In the present chapter we portray the state-of-art within FBM literature concerning the methodological approaches and the control procedures to assess a FBM and to establish if the ‘special quality’ of these memories exists and how may be captured. We provide a brief overview of the naturalistic approaches to FBM (retrospective recollections, surveys, longitudinal and/or cross-sectional designs), and of the few FBM experimental studies to circumscribe the phenomenon. We also present a new procedure used to assess autobiographical memory based upon implicit measures (autobiographical Implicit Association test; aIAT), which goes beyond traditional explicit FBM indicators of specificity, confidence, and consistency.

Identifying one’s own and others’ emotions, expressing and regulating one’s emotions, and being responsive to others’ emotions, are skills that denote Emotional Intelligence (EI). EI has quickly become an important competence also in the organizational, business and commercial worlds. The present study aimed to explore how people react in a variety of stressful, conflicting work situations. Results showed that both emotional and behavioral reactions are accounted for by a number of dimensions denoting EI skills, with Job involvement, time-in-job, orientation toward work, age and gender accounting for some of the findings. EI skills are thus crucial in the work setting by contributing to define intra- and inter-personal functioning of employees, and their wellbeing