Did you feel the 2008 Sichuan earthquake?

Where were you when you heard about it?

Do you remember hearing about this?

11th September 2001

Flashbulb memoryOriginally described by Brown & Kulik

(1977):

Exceptionally vivid memoriesUsually of important events with emotional

significanceResistant to forgetting over time

Debate centres on whether they are a special case, or the same as other memories

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Flashbulb memoryTypical ‘flashbulb’ events are dramatic,

unexpected, shockingE.g. disasters, deaths of prominent figures

(esp. if unexpected), momentous eventsWorld Trade CentreKennedy, Princess DianaSichuan EarthquakeTsunami

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Flashbulb memoryWhere you wereWhat you were doingHow you were informedHow you reactedHow others around you reacted

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Flashbulb memorySurveys about dramatic events:

Brown & Kulik (1977) found US PPs tended to have vivid memories of political assassinations

All PPs good recall of Kennedy, Black PPs better recall of Medgar Evers (civil rights worker)

Shows importance of relevanceShock, arousal also important

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Flashbulb memoryChallenges to concept of FBM:

Neisser (1988) compared PPs recall of Challenger disaster after 2 days and 2 years

Found all accounts had changed over time, some were ‘wildly inaccurate’

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Flashbulb memoryPlatania & Hertkorn (1998) – recall for

death of Princess Diana

consistency

Imm. 10 weeks

confidence

Imm. 10 weeks

everyday

Dianaeveryday

Diana

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Flashbulb memorySquire (2000) – recall of OJ Simpson

verdict

100%

50%

0%1 mo 12 mo 15 mo 3 years

Highly accurateContained major distortions

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Flashbulb memoriesRelatively little evidence for FBMs as a

distinct memory processThey ‘feel’ accurate (we are confident in

recall) but are just as prone to forgetting & change as other episodic memories

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Flashbulb Memory (continued) So what is a Flashbulb Memory then? A particularly vivid, detailed and long-lasting memory

of an event that is highly significant and emotional. E.g. Andaman Sea Tsunami; Twin Towers (9/11) ,

attack on London on 7/7, Sichuan Earthquake etc. A primary purpose of studies of flashbulb memories

has been to explain the considerable variation in memory quality.

By comparing the elaborateness, accuracy, consistency, and persistence of memories formed under various conditions, researchers should be able to identify factors that lead to especially robust personal memories.

Flashbulb Memory (continued) Key Case Studies include:- Brown & Kulik (1977) attribute the power of these

memories to a special neural physical mechanism that imprints the details on memory. 6 kinds of info likely to be recalled about moment news was heard.

Issues involved:- Where they were, what they were doing, who gave

them the news, what they felt about it, what others felt about it, what happened in the immediate aftermath.

Neisser(1992) disagrees, claiming their enduring nature is due to frequent rehearsal and reworking after the event rather than from neural activity at the time. They also seem to be subject to forgetting, e.g. like other memories.

Flashbulb Memory (continued) However…. After M. McCloskey et al (1988) attempted to clarify the

flashbulb memory concept, their article became a new source of ambiguity.

In particular, they had evaluated the claim that a flashbulb mechanism produces an elite class of complete, accurate, and permanently accessible memories.

But this claim was not part of the original theoretical models, operational definitions, and research hypotheses.

Because the flashbulb metaphor is potentially misleading, the more mundane term memory of personal circumstances may be preferable.

It is therefore, unclear whether they are a particular type of memory or whether they are substantially similar to most other memories for events.

(Source: PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2009 APA)