Exploring Early Recollections as a Projective Technique

“Think back to a long time ago when you were little, and try to recall one of your earliest memories, one of the first things that you can remember.” Since the early 1970’s, I have asked thousands of individuals to relate their early recollections by responding to these words. I follow up my initial inquiry with questions about the most important part of the memory and feelings about this vivid aspect. In my experience, few people realize that their first memories of childhood have a capacity to reveal insights into their outlook on life and ways of perceiving the world. Although early recollections were introduced by Alfred Adler over 100 years ago, most mental health practitioners are also unfamiliar with the projective technique and its potential for empathically understanding clients. For a number of years, I have been on a quest to bring an awareness to the therapeutic community and to the general public of the value of early recollections for enhancing self- understanding and human development.

When Adler wrote about early recollections and demonstrated their clinical utility to professional and lay audiences, he used an impressionistic and intuitive approach for evaluating the meaning of life’s first memories. Unfortunately, Adler did not provide systematic procedures for interpreting early childhood memories. Since the time of Adler’s original contributions, there have been about ten researchers or research teams who have devised interpretative systems for early recollections. Although many of the approaches are cumbersome or excessively lengthy, some of the ideas from the systems provide features which are useful for developing a coherent early recollections interpretation method. In recent years, I have worked hard to formulate such an approach, which I refer to as Dawn of Memories.

When asking a person to disclose an early childhood memory, I try to write down every word in order to later recall the remembrance. When the individual seems to have finished relating the memory, I ask follow-up questions relating to feelings about the most vivid aspect. My next task is to attempt to interpret the early recollection. First, I consider the theme of the memory and try to clarify this main idea. My second step is to evaluate the memory in terms of selected personality dimensions. Of the vast range of personality variables which could be considered, I have found five qualities particularly helpful for empathically understanding a person. These five dimensions include: degree of activity, social interest, optimism/pessimism, self-efficacy, and conscientiousness. For each individual, the attributes vary from high to low. My final step is to evaluate the perceptual modalities which may emerge in an early childhood memory: the senses, color, place or location and tangible objects. Many individuals have an orientation to these modes of expression which can be life-enhancing.

The following provides an example for interpreting an early recollection. Edna, who is 30 years old, relates, “I recall playing in the back yard of my grandmother’s big house in Maine and running through a field of beautiful yellow flowers with my younger brother. I could see my mother and father sitting on the back porch of the house watching us play.” Thematically, the serene memory seems to capture a sense of the richness of life, and there are elevations in Edna’s degree of activity, optimism and other personality variables. The perceptual engagement of Edna’s visual modality and depiction of color is notable, in addition to an emphasis on a sense of place.

In contrast with Edna’s remembrance, consider the implications of the following recollection in terms of outlook on life and perception of the world. Sandy, who is also age 30, states, “I remember being on the playground in first or second grade. I wanted to play with a couple of girls who were jumping rope. They wouldn’t let me jump rope with them, and I started to cry. Nobody seemed to notice me when I ran off by myself.” Thematically, the memory depicts a sense of rejection and hurt. Although Sandy tries to play with the other girls, her effort ends in futility. The memory evokes painful feelings, but there are also features of the remembrance which present more hopeful aspects. Sandy’s high degree of activity is evident and she seeks to be a part of a constructive experience with others. As with many early recollections, the memory suggests personality strengths and potential areas for development. The ultimate value of understanding the meaning of the remembrances is to be able to recognize individuals’ unique ways of being and to enhance human functioning.