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.

两位作者——一位来自文学和文化研究领域，另一位来自认知心理学家——探讨了记忆研究的跨学科视角如何拓宽和丰富当前闪光灯记忆（FBM）的研究工作。FBM 是人们得知某一公众情绪激动事件（例如 9/11）时的情景记忆。对 FBM 的心理学研究主要集中在它们的认知特性、假定的准确性和置信度上。但我们认为，从集体记忆研究的更广泛的跨学科角度来看，FBM 与社会、文化和叙事动态有着千丝万缕的联系。因此，本文将 FBM 定位于个人记忆叙事和集体记忆叙事的交叉点。将认知心理学研究与文化记忆研究联系起来，我们探讨闪光灯叙事如何影响社会身份，以及它们如何跨越国界或跨越代际。我们进一步讨论 FBM 如何与文化、美学和媒体历史联系在一起。