Ernie's car has an automatic transmission with the gear shift behind the steering wheel. Earlier today, however, he drove his mom's car, which has its automatic transmission gear shift on the floor of the car. As he tried to drive his mom's car out of her driveway, he reached for the gear shift behind the steering wheel, although it wasn't there. Ernie's behavior in this situation is illustrative of:
A) retroactive interference
B) proactive interference
C) anchoring
D) remote associations

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Ernie's behavior is an example of proactive interference, which occurs when previously learned information interferes with the learning of new information. In this case, his prior knowledge of the location of the gear shift in his own car interfered with his ability to adapt to the different location of the gear shift in his mom's car.

Ernie's Car Has an Automatic Transmission with the Gear Shift