Problem Solving & Expertise Flashcards
(37 cards)
What is a problem?
When a living organism has a goal, but does not know how to reach this goal.
The are lacking the relevant knowledge to produce an immediate solution.
What is problem solving?
Using internal knowledge representations instead of choosing from options to resolve unfavourable situations.
What are ill-defined problems?
- Problems where numerous possible strategies exist, but none are clearly specified or preferred.
- It is hard to know ahead of time which would be most effective.
What are well-defined problems?
When all aspects of the problem are clearly specified.
What are knowledge-lean problems?
Problems that do not require specific knowledge because most of the information needed to solve the problem is available.
What are knowledge-rich problems?
Problems that can only be solved by those having much relevant specific knowledge.
Describe the behaviourist approach.
- Concerned with observable behaviour.
- Theories need to be supported by empirical data obtained through controlled observations and measurement of behaviour.
- Most appropriate unit of analysis is simple stimulus-response associations.
- Problem solving occurs through trial and error processes.
- Initial learning through trying.
Describe the Learning Theory (Thorndike, 1898).
Laid the groundwork for operant conditioning.
- Suggsted that learning to solve a problem involved a flash of insight where the solution suddenly pops into consciousness.
- However, he found that problem solving is a reproductive process - involves use of past experiences and not sudden insight.
Describe the Gestalt Approach.
Gestalt psychologists emphasied the wholeness and the structural quality of the way in which we perceive, think about, and feel the world around us.
- The whole is greater than the sum of the parts.
What does the Gestalt account of problem solving focus on?
- Understanding how the problem elements fit together to form a whole in order to solve a problem.
- If we fail to solve a problem, this is because of the failure to perceive the structure of the problem situation.
- Problem is solved through insight and not trial and error.
Learning and problem solving are both a reproductive and productive process.
What does this mean?
- Reproductive problem-solving involves a systematic reuse of our previous experiences.
- Productive problem-solving is more complex, requiring a new approach that involves rethinking the problem and gaining new insight.
What is the incubation effect?
Where interruption of the task improves eventual success rate.
When a problem is put aside for some time, the subconscious mind continues to work.
Describe Murray and Denny’s (1969) study on incubation.
- Subjects were divided into high and low ability groups.
- Given 20 mins to solve a complex practical problem.
- Half of the group had to spend 5 mins on a distractor task in the middle of the complex task.
- The other half didn’t have a task to do.
Describe the findings from Murray and Denny’s (1969) study on incubation.
The two groups performed differently, but not as the researchers expected.
- For the high ability subjects, for whom the problem was relatively simple, the break acted as a distraction from the problem at hand. So they did worse with an interruption.
- The low ability subjects, for whom the problem was relatively hard, were aided by the distractor task. So they did better with an interruption.
Murray and Denny conclued that incubation was only useful for problems that people find hard.
What is the two-string problem (Maier, 1931)?
- Two pieces of string are hanging from the ceiling.
- They are too far away from each other to be reached by one person alone.
- The task is to connect them by tying a knot.
- In the room there are some irrelevant items.
- Even subtle hints help solving a problem through insight.
4 conditions:
- Two conditions providing uninformed ‘hints’ for the target solution.
- One explicit hint condition.
- A control condition.
What is the Triarchic Theory (Sternberg, 1988)?
A theory suggesting intelligence is made up of 3 parts:
- Analytical intelligence (academic problem solving)
- Practical intelligence (common sense)
- Creative intelligence (imaginative)
What is divergent thinking?
Thinking outside the box.
- It allows individuals to arrive at unique, multiple solutions to a given problem.
What is convergent thinking?
Providing one correct or well-established solution to a problem.
What are the four stages for creative thinking?
- Preparation - A problem is formulated and initial attempts are made to solve the problem.
- Incubation - The problem is set aside and no conscious work is done on it.
- Illumination - A sudden inspiration provides a new insight onto the way in which the problem might be solved.
- Verification - Conscious work on the problem develops and tests the inspiration to provide a full solution to the problem.
Describe the cheap necklace problem (Silveira, 1971).
- You are given 4 seperate chains that are each 3 links in length.
- It cost 2p to open a link and 3p to close a link.
- All links are closed at the beggining of the problem.
- Your goal is to join all 12 links of chain into a single circle at a cost of no more than 15p.
Describe the control group in the cheap necklace problem (Silveira, 1971).
- Worked on the problem for half an hour, with no break.
- 55% solved the problem after half an hour.
Describe experimental group 1 in the cheap necklace problem (Silveira, 1971).
- Worked for half an hour, interrupted by a half-hour break, which other activities were performed.
- 64% solved the problem.
Describe experimental group 2 in the cheap necklace problem (Silveira, 1971).
- Worked for half an hour, interruped by a 4 hour break, which other activitives were performed.
- 85% solved the problem
What is the representational change theory (Ohlsson, 1992)?
- A problem is hard to solve when it is represented in a way that doesn’t lead to problem solution.
- The way a problem is structured serves as a tool to access relevant knowledge in long term memory.
- The more clues/knowledge, the sooner the problem will be solved.
- An impasse occurs when there is not enough relevant clues or knowledge in memory.
- An impasse is broken when we change the way the problem is represented.
