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Abstract
Purpose: The purpose of the current study was to develop a narrative assessment of episodic memory and future thinking in adults with traumatic brain injury (TBI). We tested narrative types first with a group of healthy adults, then with a small pilot group of adults post-TBI. Methods: Participants included 16 healthy adults and a pilot group of 5 adults with TBI. Using structured autobiographical interviews, each participant produced six narratives, three about future and three about past events. Narratives were transcribed, analyzed for productivity measures, and coded for provision of memory details. Results: Both healthy adults and adults with TBI provided the greatest density of episode specific details in narratives discussing temporally remote and personally significant events. Discussion: Preliminary comparisons suggest adults with TBI are less efficient in producing narratives describing past and future events than healthy adults, and rely more on general semantic knowledge, rather than episode specific details.