Jonah loves learning new languages. In high-school, he learned French and in college, he learned Italian. Sometimes, when he is trying to remember Italian words, French words come to mind instead. This is an example of _____.
Proactive interference refers to the interference effect of previously learned materials on the acquisition and retrieval of newer materials. An example of proactive interference in everyday life would be a difficulty in remembering a friend's new phone number after having previously learned the old number.
