Should an answer be copy-pasted in duplicated questions?

Question

Recently I left an answer about the tip of the tongue phenomenon (TOT), and it turns out that this kind of question has been asked at least in 1, 2, 3 and 4 other questions. Should I copy-paste my answer in those places too? They all have accepted answers referring to the TOT, but they are short and not as descriptive as mine.

I agree that exact copies should be closed as dupes, but depending on the nature of the questions and the answer itself, I think there is a case that the answer (or at least a large portion of it) can still be perceived as targeted to each question from someone who doesn't know its history. The rule "don't copy answer" is to make sure the answer is tuned for the question it tries to answer, which is already be the case in here. I'm unable to see how in this specific case, having to write another answer (which can be seen as a duplicate to the old one) is beneficial to anyone.

For example, these pairs of questions:

• Why do our memories suddenly disappear when provoked?
• What is the term for the feeling that whatever word one tries to say it seems to be wrong (for them) or confusing (for the listeners)?

and

• How are musical hooks defined/studied in psychology?
• Are there any studies that examine the phenomenon of songs stuck in the head?

can share a copied answer. If one question can accept answers A, B, C, and the other one can accept answers C, D, E, then C can be shared between them. But in this pair:

• Do people have a tendency to stick to one opinion after they formed it?
• Term for the tendency to associate with like-minded people?

C must be tuned for each.

Answer 1

As our site grows, so will the number of questions that overlap. That's fine, and they deserve their own place in our site. If they are near exact copies, however, they need to be closed as dupes.

In the comments I see you advocate for leaving them open, hence I conclude you think they are different. If they are different indeed, then they deserve a specific answer with targeted information, and not a copy-pasted dupe answer from another post.

In that sense, no answer should be getting a copy-pasted answer from anywhere on the internet.

Answer 2

Thank you for highlighting this, Ooker!

I looked at all the questions you linked to, and personally find them sufficiently different. However, "Why we forgot what we read when we sit in the exam?" should be closed regardless, since it violates many of our minimum expectations. Certainly, it could be considered a duplicate, but the OP hardly provided any background. With such vagueness, it could just as well be a duplicate of an entirely different, yet related, question. Some of the other questions you list are only slightly better.

In relation to your question to which you included a copy/pasted answer from elsewhere. Why do you feel "Why do our memories suddenly disappear when provoked?" is the same question as "[What is the term for] the feeling that whatever word one tries to say it seems to be wrong (for them) or confusing (for the listeners)"? To you (having written this question) this might make sense, but to me these are two entirely different questions. I deleted you copy/paste answer for two reasons:

1. Somebody else already provided a reference to 'tip of the tongue'. Given the vagueness of your question, a simple reference to a potentially related term should suffice. A longer answer in this case is not warranted and does not really add anything.
2. In case an exact copy/paste would answer your question, this should be considered a duplicate and be closed as such.

In short, these are a good examples why we normally put questions which aren't well-researched on hold! With such limited information available in a question you can only guess what it really is that they are after. The solution is not to start copy pasting every potentially suitable answer to each vague question, but put such questions on hold and ask for more information of the OP.