‘I still remember’: Increased categoric autobiographical memories in behavioural variant of frontotemporal dementia

Autobiographical memory is diminished in patients with behavioural variant of frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD), and research has focused on the hampered ability of patients to retrieve specific memories. In this study, we implemented a methodology seeking to provide a qualitative analysis of autobiographical specificity. We invited patients with bvFTD and control participants to retrieve autobiographical memories and we distinguished between specific, categoric, extended and semantic autobiographical retrieval. The analysis demonstrated that patients with bvFTD produced more categoric than specific, extended or semantic memories. Thus, despite the decreased ability to retrieve specific memories, an increased ability to produce categoric memories can be observed in patients with bvFTD. These results support a positive view according to which autobiographical retrieval in bvFTD is not solely characterized by over-generality, but also by increased retrieval of categoric memories. Categoric memories, albeit lacking uniqueness, nevertheless, involve retrieval of similar or related events upon which patients may draw knowledge related to their self-image and life story.