Flashbulb memories

Abstract

The two authors – one from literary and cultural studies, the other a cognitive psychologist – explore how the interdisciplinary perspective of Memory Studies can broaden and enrich current research efforts on flashbulb memories (FBMs). FBMs are memories of the circumstances in which one learned of a public emotionally charged event, such as 9/11. Psychological research on FBMs have focused on their cognitive properties, their putative accuracy and confidence. But we claim that when seen in the broader interdisciplinary perspective of collective memory research, FBMs emerge as inextricably linked up with social, cultural, and narrative dynamics. This article therefore locates FBMs at the intersection of individual and collective memory narratives. Connecting research in cognitive psychology with cultural Memory Studies, we explore how flashbulb narratives bear on social identity and how they might travel across national boundaries or across generations. We further discuss how FBMs are tied to culture, aesthetics, and media history.