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Encoding specificity

Definition

Tulving's principle that memory retrieval is most effective when the retrieval context matches the encoding context. Mental reinstatement of context is a direct application of this principle.

Related terms

Cognitive Interview (CI)
An evidence-based interview technique developed by Fisher and Geiselman that uses memory-enhancement strategies including mental reinstatement of context, free recall, temporal variation,...
Free recall
The CI phase in which a witness reports everything they can remember without interruption or directing questions from the interviewer, producing a...
Mental reinstatement of context
A CI technique in which the witness is asked to mentally return to the setting of the event, imagining what they saw,...
Misinformation effect
The incorporation of misleading post-event information into the original memory trace, documented by Loftus and Palmer (1974) and subsequent studies. Distinguished from...
PEACE
Preparation and Planning, Engage and Explain, Account, Closure, Evaluation: the five-stage interview framework adopted in England and Wales from 1992, used for...

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