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The '''encoding specificity principle''' is the general principle that matching the encoding contexts of information at recall assists in the retrieval of [[Episodic memory|episodic memories]]. It provides a framework for understanding how the conditions present while [[Encoding (memory)|encoding]] information relate to [[memory]] and [[Recollection|recall]] of that information.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Tulving|first=Endel|author2=Donald Thomson|title=Encoding specificity and retrieval processes in episodic memory|journal=Psychological Review|year=1973|volume=80|issue=5|pages=352–373|doi=10.1037/h0020071}} {{verify source |date=September 2019 |reason=This ref was deleted Special:Diff/889862721 by a bug in VisualEditor and later restored by a bot from the original cite located at Special:Permalink/884039838 cite #1 - verify the cite is accurate and delete this template. [[User:
It was introduced by Thompson and [[Endel Tulving|Tulving]] who suggested that contextual information is encoded with memories which effects the retrieval of said memories. When a person uses information stored in their memory it is necessary that the information is accessible. The accessibility is governed by retrieval cues, these cues are dependent on the encoding pattern; the specific encoding pattern may vary from instance to instance, even if nominally the item is the same, as encoding depends on the context. This conclusion was drawn from a recognition-memory task.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Tulving|first=Endel|last2=Thomson|first2=Donald M.|date=1971|title=Retrieval processes in recognition memory: Effects of associative context.|journal=Journal of Experimental Psychology|volume=87|issue=1|pages=116–124|doi=10.1037/h0030186|issn=0022-1015}}</ref> A series of psychological experiments were undertaken in the 1970s which continued this work and further showed that context affects our ability to recall information.
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====Physical environment====
The ___location and environment in which you learn something readily affects how you can freely recall it.<ref name="underwater study">{{cite journal|last=Godden|first=D.R.|author2=A.D. Baddely|title=Context-Dependent Memory in Two Natural Environments: On Land and Underwater|journal=The British Journal of Psychology|year=1975|volume=66|issue=3|pages=325–331|doi=10.1111/j.2044-8295.1975.tb01468.x}}</ref> In a famous experiment by Godden and Baddeley in 1975 researchers took two groups of individuals and asked them to study and remember a list of given words. One group was given a list of words to study while underwater in scuba gear, the other was given the same list on dry land. When asked to recall the information the participants remembered the list of words better when tested in the environment where the list was studied. This experiment illustrates how recreating the physical environment of encoding can aid in the retrieval process.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/885178247|title=Cognitive psychology : connecting mind, research and everyday experience|last=Goldstein, E. Bruce, 1941-|date=2015|publisher=Cengage learning|isbn=1-285-76388-2|edition=4th edition|___location=New york|oclc=885178247}}</ref>
The type of environment itself did not matter, just that the environment was constant during encoding and recall, as the effect on recall of the environment of recall depends on the environment of original learning.<ref name="underwater 2">{{cite journal|last=Godden|first=Duncan|author2=Alan Baddely|title=When Does Context Influence Recognition Memory?|journal=The British Journal of Psychology|year=1980|volume=71|pages=99–104|doi=10.1111/j.2044-8295.1980.tb02735.x}}</ref> Memory tested through recognition, however, was not affected. This phenomenon is explained by what is termed the [[Context-dependent memory|outshining hypothesis]]: context can be a useful cue for memory but only when it is needed. One will only turn to context as a cue when better cues are unavailable. In recognition tests, cues other than the immediate encoding context and environment are superior, whereas in free-recall tests, the immediate environment serves as the only cue to trigger memory.<ref name="underwater 2" />
====Auditory environment====
The level and kind of noise in any given encoding environment will affect the ability to recall the information encoded in a different auditory environment.<ref name="Music auditory">{{cite journal|last=Grant|first=Harry|author2=Lane C. Bredahl |author3=John Clay |author4=Jennifer Ferrie |author5=Jane Groves |author6=Timothy McDorman |author7=Veronica Dark |title=Context-dependent memory for meaningful material: Information for students|journal=Applied Cognitive Psychology|year=1998|volume=12|issue=6|pages=617–623|doi=10.1002/(sici)1099-0720(1998120)12:6<617::aid-acp542>3.0.co;2-5|citeseerx=10.1.1.497.6500}}</ref> Grant, et. al. (1998) performed a study to test how the auditory environment during encoding and the auditory environment during testing effected recall and recognition during a test. In the study 39 participants were asked to read through an article one time, knowing that they would take a short test on the material. Each of the participants wore headphones while reading but some of the participants heard moderately loud background noise and others heard nothing. They found that regardless of the type of test, it is more beneficial to study and test in the same auditory environment.<ref name="Music auditory" /> In line with the encoding specificity principle, this mismatch at encoding and retrieval is detrimental to test performance.<ref name=Textbook>{{cite book|last=Robinson-Riegler|first=Bridget|title=Cognitive Psychology: Applying the Science of the mind|year=2008|publisher=Pearson Publishing|___location=Boston, MA|isbn=978-0-205-03364-5|pages=246–248}}</ref>
'''Language and the voluntary retrieval of autobiographical memories'''
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====Alcohol====
Information encoded and stored while intoxicated, see [[state-dependent memory]], is retrieved more effectively when an individual is intoxicated as compared to being sober. State-dependent memory is one example of encoding specificity. If an individual encodes information while intoxicated he or she, ideally, should match that state when attempting to recall the encoded information. This type of state-dependent effect is strongest with free recall rather than when strong retrieval cues are present.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Eich|first=James Eric|date=March 1980
This finding is a variation of the context-dependency effect of the encoding specificity principle and is much more apparent with low-imagery words than high-imagery words. Both high and low imagery words, however, are less likely to be recalled while intoxicated due to the inherent nature of intoxication.<ref name="alcohol">{{cite journal|last=Weingartner|first=Herbert|author2=Wolansa Adefras|author3=James E. Eich|author4=Dennis L. Murphy|year=1976|title=Encoding-imagery specificity in alcohol state-dependent learning|journal=Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Learning and Memory|volume=2|issue=1|pages=83–87|doi=10.1037/0278-7393.2.1.83}}</ref>
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==== Studying ====
The encoding specificity principle has an implication for studying; as the recall of information is aided by the context of encoding the information, suggesting one should study in a similar context to the exam. The way an individual studies should match the way he or she is tested. If you are tested on application of principles to new examples you should practice by applying principles during the study session. When students know the requirements for a test or the performance task they can better encode the information while studying and can perform at a higher level when tested.<ref>{{Cite book|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/967611520|title=Studying. Technical Report No. 155.|last=Anderson, Thomas H.|oclc=967611520}}</ref> Studying information in a manner that is closest to the method of assessment is the optimal method of studying due to it aiding recall of the information in a similar context to that of the assessment.
==Criticism==
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