Prof. Sami Gülgöz and KURAM Lab Graduate Student - Applied Cognitive Psychology

A new paper, "The Functions of Remembering the Past and Imagining the Future during the COVID-19 Pandemic," by graduate students Zeynep Adıgüzel, Demet Ay, Ezgi Bilgin, Selin Buse Coşkuner and Prof. Sami Gülgöz from Koç University Psychology Department (KURAM Lab), has been published in Applied Cognitive Psychology. The study conducted shortly after the first case of COVID-19 shows the effects of the pandemic on autobiographical memories and future projections. The findings showed an overall decrease in the functional use of autobiographical events during the pandemic compared to before and after. Moreover, events expected to occur after the pandemic were perceived as most functional, suggesting a strong sense of optimism among individuals about a future free from the pandemic. These findings reveal that the pandemic creates a breaking point in the use of autobiographical memories. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/acp.4181