The transition to university in a sample of Italian students: the role of integrative memories of high school transition

Grounded in literature on school transitions and autobiographical memory, this study focuses on the personal memories of a sample of 112 young Italian adults facing their transition to university. Participants were asked to recall five memories of their high school transition experience and, subsequently, the students were assessed in terms of resilience, future orientation, academic motivation, university transition experience, and subjective well-being since attending university. The memories were coded for narrative themes, structure, and integrative meaning. The results, consistent with prior studies on school memories, indicate that memory narratives are, on average, specific and focused on interpersonal relationships. Tension, redemption sequences, and autobiographical integration were other important dimensions of most of the memories. The number of integrative memories (i.e., those that connect a certain memory with a broader meaning) is correlated with important individual factors that influence university transition (resilience, future orientation, and academic intrinsic motivation) and predict both perceived difficulty in the university transition and subjective well-being. Results are discussed in light of prior studies on autobiographical memory and school transitions.