Abstract
The human mind has various subdivisions that work together to satisfy the essential needs of an individual. The human memory functions to experience events from the past. Flashbulb memory refers to an amazing clear memory of the instance in which one hears the surprising news. The flashbulb memory is a picture of a, particularly unexpected event. This memory is however not complete; it is quickly forgotten. Flashbulb memories are different from other types of memories in the sense that it relies on emotions and surprise of an individual. A dramatic event strikes a flashbulb memory to an individual. Major events like the assassination of prominent individuals can lead to people recalling detailed information about the event. There have been several disagreements on whether flashbulb memories are distinctive and more accurate than ordinary memories. Standard memories are more precise and last for a longer period compared to flashbulb memories; this is an argumentative essay to ascertain whether flashbulb memories are a unique or a general mechanism.
While it is true that flashbulb memories possess characteristics similar to those of ordinary memories, there is a need to note that there are certain special features aligned with flashbulb memories. This has precipitated the emergence of the pertinent notion that flashbulb memories are a special mechanism and not a general mechanism. The first special or unique feature of flashbulb memories is that they are not entirely dependent on rehearsal, but emotions are significant in the formation of flashbulb memories. In ordinary memories, rehearsals help in preventing loss of memory, while in flashbulb memories, rehearsals assist in the elaboration of the memory making it clearer (Kraha et al., 2014). It is evident that ordinary memories need a preventive measure to avoid loss of valuable information; this is not the case in flashbulb memories, which do not depend on rehearsals; hence, portraying the notion that flashbulb memories are a special mechanism.
In addition, flashbulb memories have strong autobiographical information. Flashbulb memory presents with the ability to store more accurate knowledge than conventional memory (Day & Ross, 2014). Common memories derive knowledge from different sources, whereas flashbulb memories get knowledge from a particular unit in the brain. On another note, flashbulb memories are special because they are indelible. Standard or ordinary memory can be lost from an individual’s mind, but flashbulb memories often occur reminding one of a particular event from the past. An example is a rape victim, after a period of two years forgets the incident. The victim recalls the event when she hears that another person has been raped. Emotions in flashbulb memories do not fade away easily (Kraha & Boals, 2014).
Besides, flashbulb memories are a unique mechanism because they are triggered by consequences of an event (Luminet & Curci, 2008). The extent an occurrence dictates the extent of the emotional aspects of a person about the event; this ensures that the information is remembered for a longer period. There is a link between the emotional status of a person and the event that led to the feeling. Ordinary memory does not depend on the consequentiality of a particular event; hence, flashbulb is a unique mechanism. Another uniqueness of flashbulb memory is that it depends on the distinctiveness of an experience. Distinctive events are not frequent and not familiar with daily activities. The degree of the uniqueness of an event predicts the probability of recall in the future. An example is the occurrence of a terrorist attack that causes harm to individuals, and another instance is a terrorist mission that does not succeed. A victim of the terrorist attack would remember the event because they were wounded (Day & Ross, 2014). Ordinary memory does not rely on the distinctiveness of an event but rather recall all events at the same rate. The source of information of the flashbulb memory dictates the type of information encoded person's memory and does not predict the reaction of an individual to the message. Getting information from the media is perceived and stored differently in one’s memory; this is a unique feature of flashbulb memory that does not exist in conventional memory.
While much has been hypothesized regarding flashbulb memories, it is of the essence to realize that they do not differ greatly from ordinary memories. For this reason, flashbulb memories may not be regarded as a special mechanism. There are certain aspects of flashbulb memories that are closely related with those of ordinary or standard memories. More importantly, flashbulb memories are photographic in nature whereby images of the past are experienced; the mechanism also exists in a conventional or standard memory (Kraha et al., 2014). An example of a flashbulb memory that can be considered is on 11th September 2001 for many Americans. The day holds particular significance for them considering that Islamic terrorists crashed a total of four planes in New York, Washington D.C. and Pennsylvania. What reinforces the fact that this is a flashbulb memory is the fact that even the adults remember this day, yet it was not a recent one. The fact that most of them do not remember what they saw but rather what they heard similar to the assassination of President Kennedy. Flashbulb memories are like that because they are shocking events that it ensures accurate data is stored in our long-term memory. The fact is that people do not remember the event, but rather they remember what they learnt about the event.
Also, the clarity of flashbulb memory details is dependent on five key things. First of them is where the individual was when the event happened. The location of a person during a traumatic event etches the memory deep within our minds. Secondly, the activity on that particular day is also significant. Also, the person who informs you on the traumatic event also matters. The source of the information matters because prominent persons ensure that the memory stays for long. The fourth important factor is the person’s expression during the expression of the event coupled with the articulation of the same. Finally, the aftermath is also important for a traumatic event like the 9/11 with so many victims leaves a significant mark making it a flashbulb memory.
Despite the fact that flashbulb memories may have features similar to those of ordinary memories, there is a need to point out the fact that flashbulb memories are based on an extraordinary concordance in an individual’s memory. In a nutshell, flashbulb memory is a special mechanism because it entails a detailed recall performance that preserves all the memories regarding a particular event, especially traumatic events. Notable is the fact that flashbulb memories are reliant on a neuropsychological mechanism that allows the mind to store a pictorial memory of significant events in the past. Conclusively, notions that flashbulb memories are a general mechanism and not a special mechanism are not substantive.
The ability of flashbulb memory is to recall a clear picture of the past events, surprise also triggers the memory, and the process of encoding flashbulb information is the same as conventional memory. On the other hand, flashbulb memory is a unique mechanism that does depend on rehearsals for one to recall, it only needs a recall to enable the enhancement of the memory. Flashbulb memory is unique because it is not easily lost from the mind, and the occurrence of a particular event will trigger the recall of the past. A unique event will have the highest probability of recall in the future. My argument is that flashbulb memories are a unique mechanism, they are not a general mechanism. The flashbulb memories need to exist in their class as a unique type of memories.
References
Day, M. & Ross, M. (2014). Predicting Confidence in Flashbulb Memories. Memory, 22(3), 232-242.
Kraha, A. & Boals, A. (2014). Why so Negative? Positive Flashbulb Memories for a Personal Event. Memory, 22(4), 442-449.
Kraha, A. Talarico, J. & Boals, A. (2014). Unexpected Positive Events do not Result in Flashbulb Memories. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 28(4), 579-589.
Luminet, O. & Curci, A. (2008). Flashbulb Memories: New Issues and New Perspectives. London: Psychology Press.
