Concept · Cognitive Bias: Memory biases and distortions
Self-reference effect
Origin: Rogers, Kuiper & Kirker, 1977
Biological Parallel
Animals encode self-relevant information (threats to territory, food sources they found) more deeply than observed events—what affects you directly predicts your future better than others' experiences. Self-referential processing activates broader neural networks including identity, emotion, and autobiographical systems, creating redundant retrieval pathways. The self-reference effect is adaptive egocentrism: your brain prioritizes encoding what happened to you because that's the best predictor of what will happen to you.