Memory and the Sense of Self

Key points

How we remember influences the sense of self to a greater degree than most experiences.

Specificity of memory means recalling a particular event at a particular time and place.

Coherence means forming a complete whole, with various aspects of memory connecting to each other.

We'd do well to make important memories specific and coherent.

Psychologist Daniel Kahneman made an important distinction between what he called the Experiencing Self and the Remembering Self. Thoughts, feelings, and sensations occurring now comprise the Experiencing Self. The Remembering Self constructs a narrative of life based on memories. But it's prone to biases, such as focusing on the peak and end of a past experience, while largely ignoring its duration. For example, we might remember a vacation