Context, both physical and mental, plays a role in information recall and creativity. In one experiment, scuba divers were asked to learn a list of words on dry land and another underwater.  Researchers found that recall was higher in the context in which the words were learned.  If they learned words underwater their recall was higher underwater.  The same was true for the words learned on dry land.

This is the reason detectives often take victims back to the scene of the crime.  It is also a good reason for a student who has missed a test to take the test in the classroom where the information was learned rather than taking the test in the teacher’s office.

We can also see why sometimes to stimulate creativity, it is best to go to a new environment.  You will be more creative when the old memories associated with the old context do not get in the way.

I love this stuff!