Monitor on Psychology - September 2011 - (Page 62)

“Every time there’s a public trauma, psychologists run out in the street and capture people’s memories of what happened,” says Hirst. “They did it with the Challenger explosion. They did it with the death of Princess Diana .… And we did it with 9/11.” Hirst, along with 15 other investigators across the country, runs the largest study of 9/11 memories. At least three smaller studies have also been published by memory researchers who, amidst their own shock and horror at the destruction of 9/11, knew that it presented a special research opportunity that other flashbulb situations hadn’t: The attacks hit multiple communities and directly touched millions of Americans — forcing them to leave work early or race to retrieve their children from school. The media coverage was unending and there was a collective realization that life in America was forever changed. Now, 10 years later, the research findings are revealing a story that, like memory itself, is not exactly clear. Some of the 9/11 studies indicate that we forget or falsely remember much more than we realize; we get facts wrong, for example, or misremember our emotional reactions. But some psychologists say more research is needed because these studies haven’t done enough to consider the memorymaking role of emotion or to distinguish flashbulb memories from regular memories. Certainly people believe they’re more accurate and recall them more vividly. And there is mounting evidence that the closer we are physically and mentally to the event, the more we get it right, and the more we can recount every sight, sound and smell we experienced. opportunity — and guilt Psychologist Jennifer Talarico, PhD, won’t forget the moment she got the news. At the time a psychology doctoral student at Duke University, Talarico was making breakfast in her apartment when she heard a TV announcer say that a plane had struck the World Trade Center. Then she saw the second plane hit, and her mind turned to her work. “I instantly thought this would be a tremendous opportunity for a flashbulb study,” says Talarico, now an assistant professor of psychology at Lafayette College. “Then I felt terribly guilty for thinking about work at such a tragic time.” But the more she pondered it, the more she realized how much studying people’s immediate reactions to the tragedy could advance the research on flashbulb memories. At the time of 9/11, there was growing evidence of problems with Brown’s and Kulik’s theory, particularly the claims about accuracy. A number of studies had looked at how well people remembered the circumstances of such public events as the O.J. Simpson verdict, President Nixon’s resignation and the Challenger explosion. Many of these studies indicated that, over time, people’s memories of learning about the events — and of the events themselves — eroded, which challenges the contention that flashbulb memories are more accurate. One of these studies, published in the book “Affect and Accuracy in Recall: Studies of ‘Flashbulb’ Memories’” (1992), had been widely cited for measuring flashbulb memory accuracy by comparing people’s immediate recollections with later recollections. Two and a half years after the Challenger exploded, people’s memories of the event and how they heard about it deteriorated significantly, found the study, led by Ulric Neisser, PhD, then at Emory University and now at Cornell. But that research had several shortcomings, says Talarico. First, it only examined people’s memories at two points, immediately afterward and much later, so it wasn’t clear when or how their flashbulb memories declined. Second, it didn’t compare people’s flashbulb memories with regular Monitor on psychology • septeMber 2011 I was in the World Trade Center Marriott on the 10th floor. I was at the window doing makeup when the windows shook. Then I saw all this gray confetti out the window, then a huge piece of white hot metal falling. I thought, “Bomb!” I grabbed a blouse, put on a jacket and was directed into the lobby of Tower 2 as I exited the hotel. There was acrid smoke and sirens. I passed a group of African-American women evacuating who were sobbing and comforting each other. I was in the underground mall when the second “bomb” went off. Most people were dashing toward the subway, but I saw an exit with daylight. Once outside, I realized I’d lost my cell phone. I tried to use the pay phones, but they weren’t working. I saw an Asian man closing up his restaurant and signaled him that I needed something to drink. He opened the door, handed me water and a fresh roll. He wouldn’t take any money. I followed the crowd across the Manhattan Bridge into Brooklyn. For some reason, I turned around as I was walking under the Brooklyn Bridge and saw the first tower slowly twist at the top and then collapse. I ran under the bridge, fearful that debris would come my way. Thankfully, it didn’t. I was walking with a couple, and we stopped at a car wash and asked the owner, Mohammed, if we could rest there. He and his family let us use their phone without charge, and the three of us figured out how to get hold of people we knew. After that I sat down, finally broke down and sobbed. Mohammed provided much-needed tissues. —ART TEAChER, MoRGANToWN, W.vA. 62

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Monitor on Psychology - September 2011

Monitor on Psychology - September 2011
Letters
President’s Column
Contents
From the CEO
Supreme Court hears psychologists on prison and video game cases
Antipsychotics are overprescribed in nursing homes
New MCAT likely to recognize the mind-body connection
A $2 million boost for military and families
In Brief
GOVERNMENT RELATIONS UPDATE
On Your Behalf
Judicial Notebook
Random Sample
TIME CAPSULE
QUESTIONNAIRE
Speaking of Education
SCIENCE WATCH
An uncertain future for American workers
Advocating for psychotherapy
PRACTICE PROFILE
ETHICALLY SPEAKING
Seared in our memories
Helping kids cope in an uncertain world
APA and Nickelodeon team up
Muslims in America, post 9/11
Bin Laden’s death
‘They expect us to be there’
Answering the call of public policy
Candidates answer final questions
APA News
Division Spotlight
New leaders
AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGICAL FOUNDATION
Disaster relief training
Honoring teaching excellence
Personalities

Monitor on Psychology - September 2011