By Clancy Walsh Do you ever question your childhood memories about your grandparents? Well you're not the only one. Grandparents worry about what their grandchildren will remember about them after they pass away. Many families experience their children not remembering what the grandparent wanted them to remember them by due to the child's memory. If one of your grandparents may have passed away when you were at a younger age the chance of remembering them correctly decreases. Although the grandparent may have played an important role in the grandchild’s life the memory of children is like “Childhood amnesia” as Freud calls it. Most young children form memories early in life but they forget them quickly, and they are unable to hold onto the memory. Paula Span (grandmother) spends one a week as daycare for her grandchild, and other time needed. She commutes from New Jersey to Brooklyn to spend time with her granddaughter. Paula questions what her granddaughter Bartola will remember about her. The two of them sing, read, stroll, spend full days together, but Bartola might not remember any of it. Grandparents want children to remember them and want them to think about their legacy by transmitting lessons about kindness, strength, confidence, and love. Bartola gets to go to the theater with her grandmother so she thinks of this “tradition” that her and her grandmother get to do when they get older. Psychologists talk about kids and autobiographical memory where they recall specific events of personal relevance, the child retains very little of what happened before the age of three. Paula repeats experiences her and Bartola have been through to strengthen Bartola’s recollections. Paula is taught to talk about the time she spends with her granddaughter and how they enjoy spending time with each other. Along with that, she should describe the details of what happened and what things looked like to help the memory Bartola. For example, if she wants Bartola to remember the summers on Cape Cod she should describe the hermit crabs, tide pools, etc. Using photos can help, it provides a chronological, pictorial narrative that kids and grandparents and parents can look at. As children repeat experiences it strengthens the child's recollections. Also, Paula wants Bartola to remember her in a way that she cared for her, comfort her, and that she was a nig part of her earlier life. This connects to feelings of attachment. This feeling of trust develops in early stages of life. Grandparents respond to their grandchildren with love, patience, and help them feel secure and valued which increases positive attachment. In this experiment, Paula uses new teachings she learned to try and get her granddaughter to remember her for the caring, kind, loving grandmother she is. This study relates to my own life in numerous different ways. To begin, I wonder if I remember my grandparents they way they intended me to. Since all of my grandparents besides one grandmother has passed away, it is challenging for me to remember the others because they passed away when I was at such a young age. Also, I never met two of my grandparents. I have some memories of my grandfather who passed away when I was three. Mostly from photos or being reminded of the time I spent with him. Overall, my life has some connections to this study. In conclusion, the implications of this study is grandparents are having concerns and questioning whether or not their grandchild will remember them with significance. Grandparents want to be remembered by their grandchildren in positive ways. They want to be remembered by the time they spent with each other and enjoyed it, and love, patience, and care they provide for their grandchild. Many grandparents find it concerning how their grandchildren may not remember them. Span, P. (2019, September 19). What Will My Grandchild Remember? Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/19/well/family/what-will-my-grandchild-remember.html.
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Ms. Carrigan's Psych ClassWe have been reading articles about psychological studies to inform the way we live our lives. Please explore, and we hope you learn a bit about the psychology in your life! Categories
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