Chapter 12 Flashcards
What are insight problems?
Problems that cause someone to arrive at an answer at a point that can’t be tracked
What is fixation?
An obstacle to problem solving according to Gestalt psychologists - people’s tendency to focus on a specific characteristic of the problem that keeps them from arriving at a solution
What is functional fixedness?
Focus on the familiar functions or uses of an object
What is a mental set?
A preconceived notion about how to approach a problem determined by person’s experience or what has worked before
How does mental set influence problem solving?
Because of the preconceptions of the functions of an object or how to solve a problem, it can hinder your progress in the problem solving and prevent you from seeing easier ways
What are the steps in the process of analogical problem solving?
1) Noticing that there is an analogous relationship between source problem and target problem (most difficult step)
2) Mapping correspondence between source and target problem
3) Applying mapping to generate a parallel solution to target problem
How did Newell/Simon see problems?
In terms of initial state (conditions at beginning of the problem) and goal state (solution of problem). Also operators which are actions that take problem from one state to the other
What is the problem space?
Initial state, goal state, and intermediate states for particular problem
What is means-end analysis?
To reduce difference between initial and goal states by making subgoals
What is divergent thinking?
Thinking that is open-ended and involves a large number of potential solutions
What is latent inhibition?
A trait that seems to be related to mental illness and creativity - the capacity to screen out stimuli that are considered irrelevant. Reduced LI is associated with both mental illness and enhanced creativity
