Final answer:
The main issue with static scoping is that it can lead to difficulties in scope management and variable lifetime understanding, making it challenging to maintain and debug complex codebases.
Step-by-step explanation:
The general problem with static scoping in programming is that it can sometimes lead to difficulties in managing and understanding variables' lifetimes, especially in complex codebases. Static scoping determines the variable scope at compile time, and as such, the context in which a variable is available is fixed based on where it is declared. Due to this, developers may encounter issues when needing to reuse variable names or when debugging, as the scope is not flexible to change based on runtime conditions.
Developers might find it challenging to handle scope management effectively, particularly with nested functions or blocks where the same variable name is used for different purposes. Moreover, in languages with static scoping, maintaining large codebases can get cumbersome as developers must constantly be aware of the scope hierarchy to prevent errors and ensure correct variable usage.