This volume investigates mnemonic self-reference effects in preschoolers referring to memory recall of stimuli as a function of the depth of mental processing. It explores a series of 7 experiments exploring the role of self in 3- and 4-year-olds event memory. This effect is thought to be based on the organizational properties of a highly elaborated self-concept and so offers a clear route to study the child s developing sense of self. However very few studies have investigated the origin and the development of this effect. New evidence is provided to suggest that preschool children like adults show a mnemonic advantage for material that has been physically linked with the self through performance of a depicted action (Experiment 1). Moreover 3- and 4-year olds show a bias for material that has been visually and linguistically processed with the self-image (Experiments 2 3 4) and material that has been socio-cognitively linked to the self in terms of ownership (Experiments 5 6 7). The data imply that both bottom-up (kinesthetic feedback self-concept) and top-down (attention) aspects of self-reflection may play a supporting role in early event memory perhaps representing a nascent form of autobiographical processing. Importantly this research highlights a promising methodology for elucidating the executive role of the self in cognition.
