Subjective memory complaints in young adults: the influence of the emotional state

Introduction. Many young people today display memory complaints that are not linked to their real cognitive performance. A number of studies have sought to identify the factors involved in this problem, such as anxious-depressive symptoms, the variables of anxiety traditionally being measured as somatic or cognitive manifestations with an activation that is unspecific or not linked to any particular stimulus. Aims. To perform an exploratory analysis to determine the role played by symptoms of depression and of various subtypes of specific and unspecific anxiety in memory complaints in young adults. Patients and methods. The sample used in this study was made of 193 university students, 71% of whom were females, with a mean age of 22.22 +/- 3.67 years. The variable 'Memory complaints' was measured with the Memory Failures Questionnaire, and the Brief Symptom Check List was used to measure the variables 'Depression', 'Social anxiety', 'Obsessive-compulsive anxiety', 'Agoraphobic anxiety', 'Somatisation' and 'Insomnia'. Results. The variables of specific anxiety show a greater correlation with memory complaints than unspecific anxiety. Multiple regression analysis explained 34.9% of the variance of memory complaints, although the only variable that made a significant contribution was 'Social anxiety', which alone explains 34.4%. Conclusions. A distinct influence between the different types of anxiety and memory complaints has been observed. The findings obtained are a novelty in this area of knowledge by pointing to a greater relevance of the variables of specific anxiety in comparison to unspecific anxiety in explaining memory complaints and the need to take a personalised approach.