Flashbulb Memory - Models - The Photographic Model

The Photographic Model

Brown and Kulik proposed the term flashbulb memory, along with the first model of the process involved in developing what they called flashbulb accounts. The photographic model proposes that in order for a flashbulb account to occur in the presence of a stimulus event, there must be, a high level of surprise, consequentiality, and emotional arousal. Specifically, at the time in which an individual first hears of an event, the degree of unexpectedness and surprise is the first step in the registration of the event. The next step involved in registration of flashbulb accounts is the degree of consequentiality, which in turn, triggers a certain level of emotional arousal. Brown and Kulik described consequentiality as the things one would imagine may have gone differently if the event hadn't occurred, or what consequences the event had on an individual's life. Furthermore, Brown and Kulik believed that high levels of these variables would also result in frequent rehearsal, being either covert ("always on the mind") or overt (ex. talked about in conversations with others). Rehearsal, which acts as a mediating process in the development of a flashbulb account, creates stronger associations and more elaborate accounts. Therefore, the flashbulb memory becomes more accessible and vividly remembered for a long period of time.