Encoding Memories

AP Psychology· difficulty 3/5

In a classic study by Godden and Baddeley, scuba divers learned a list of 40 words either on land or 10 feet underwater. Later, divers were tested on recall either in the same environment where they learned the list or the opposite environment. Recall was significantly better when divers were tested in the same environment in which they had learned the words, regardless of whether that was on land or underwater.

The broader principle that retrieval cues at testing should match those present at encoding is called:

  • A

    The misinformation effect

  • B

    The spacing effect

  • C

    The encoding specificity principle

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  • D

    The serial position effect

Explanation

The encoding specificity principle holds that retrieval is most effective when retrieval cues match the cues present at encoding. The serial position effect concerns recall by list position.

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