Question

Sharon has three dogs, so she is well acquainted with her veterinarian. However, when she sees him at the grocery store without his scrub suit and out of his office, she can't remember who he is. This is an example of _____.

Answer 1

This is an example of the encoding specificity principle.

Step-by-step explanation:

According to the encoding specificity principle, memories are connected to the context in which they were created. As a matter of fact, retrieving a memory will be more easily done if the context and the cues of the current moment somehow duplicate the conditions present when the memory was formed. That is why Sharon cannot remember who the veterinarian is. They are not in his office, he is not wearing the usual attire, and so on. The context and the cues do not resemble the usual ones.