CHAPTER 12 - PROBLEM SOLVING AND CREATIVITY Flashcards

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1
Q

define a problem

A

occurs when there is an obstacle between a present state and a goal where it is not obvious how to get around the problem

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2
Q

define a problem how a psychologist would

A

a situation in which you need to accomplish a goal and the solution is not immediately obvious

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3
Q

according to the Gestalt psychologists, what 2 things are involved in problem solving?

A
  1. how people represent the problem in their mind

2. how solving a problem involves a reorganization or reconstructing of this representation

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4
Q

what is restructuring?

A

changing the problem’s representation

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5
Q

what is insight?

A

any sudden comprehension or realization that involves reorganization of a person’s mental representation of a stimulus to interpret what was not initially obvious

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6
Q

who distinguished between insight and non-insight problems?

A

Janet Metcalfe and David Wiebe

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7
Q

what did Metcalfe and Wiebe hypothesize about those working on insight and non-insight problems?

A

insight: should not be good at predicting how near they are to a solution

non-insight: would be more likely to know when they are near a solution

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8
Q

what were the insight problems used in Metcalfe and Wiebe’s insight experiment?

A

triangle problem

chain problem

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9
Q

what is the triangle problem?

A

moving 3 dots on a triangle pointing upwards to make it point downwards

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10
Q

what is the chain problem?

A

given 4 pieces of chain with 3 links and the goal is to join the pieces into a closed loop only having 15cents when it costs 2 cents to open a link and 3 cents to close

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11
Q

what were the non-insight problems used in Metcalfe and Wiebe’s experiment?

A

analytically based problems

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12
Q

what are analytically based problems?

A

problems solved by a process of systematic analysis and using techniques based on past experience

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13
Q

those who were working on insight problems had ___ ratings until the end and then a ___ increase in warmth ratings?

A

cold, sudden

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14
Q

those who were working on non-insight problems had both ___ and ___ ratings that _____ increased over time

A

cold, warm, gradual

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15
Q

what is fixation?

A

people’s tendency to focus on specific characteristics of the problem that keeps them from arriving at the solution

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16
Q

what is functional fixedness?

A

focusing on familiar functions of uses of an object

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17
Q

who used the candle problem?

A

Karl Dunker

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18
Q

what is the candle problem?

A

given a vertical corkboard on the wall, candles, matches, a match box, and tacks; one must mount the candle on the corkboard so it can burn without dripping wax on the floor

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19
Q

what were the 2 groups that Dunker introduced the problem to?

A
  1. box containing materials

2. materials not inside the box

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20
Q

which group found the problem more difficult?

A

the group that had a box as a container to the other materials

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21
Q

what could Dunker conclude about the box and fixation?

A

the boxes were only seen as containers thus they did not think to use it as a mount

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22
Q

what is the two-string problem

A

task is to tie together 2 strings that were hanging from the ceiling given a chair and pliers

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23
Q

what was the hard part of the two-sting problem?

A

the strings were too far away from each other

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24
Q

what is the applied functional fixedness in the two-string problem?

A

thinking the pliers are a set of tools rather than a weight

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25
Q

what is a mental set?

A

a preconceived notion about how to approach a problem

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26
Q

what is the water jug problem?

A

task is to determine on paper how to obtain a required volume of water given 3 empty jars as measures

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27
Q

who studied how participants solve with and without mental sets?

A

Luchins

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28
Q

what were Luchin’s 2 groups in his water jug experiment?

A
  1. mental set group: those who solved more problems before target problems thus were exposed to a mental set formula
  2. non-mental set group: were only solving the target problems thus were not exposed to a mental set formula
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29
Q

what did Luchins observe?

A

23% of the mental set group used a simpler solution and everyone in the non-mental set group used simpler solutions

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30
Q

what did Luchin’s conclude about mental set and the water jug problem?

A

mental set can influence problem solving because of preconceptions about the functions of an object and the way to solve a problem

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31
Q

who invented their Logic Theorist computer program designed to simulate human problem solving?

A

Alan Newell and Herbart Simon

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32
Q

according to Newell and Simon, what is problem solving?

A

a search that occurs between the posing of the problem and its solution

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33
Q

what is Newell and Simon’s initial state?

A

conditions at the beginning at the problem

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34
Q

what is Newell and Simon’s goal state?

A

the solution to the problem

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35
Q

what is the Tower of Hanoi problem?

A

given 3 pegs with 3 rings that increase in size must all be placed on the right peg based on a set of rules

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36
Q

what are Newell and Simon’s operators?

A

actions that take the problem from one state to another

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37
Q

what is Newell and Simon’s intermediate state?

A

conditions after each step is made toward the solving a problem

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38
Q

what is a problem space?

A

all possible states that can occur when solving a problem

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39
Q

what is means-end analysis?

A

a way of solving a problem in which the goal is to reduce the difference between the initial and goal states

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40
Q

what are subgoals?

A

small goals that help create intermediate states that are closer to the goal

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41
Q

what is the multilated checkerboard problem?

A

asks if a board loses 2 corners, can one cover the remaining squares with 31 dominos if a domino covers 2 squares of the opposite colour

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42
Q

what is the principle behind the multilated checkerboard problem?

A

if the 2 squares that are removed are the same colours, it is not possible to cover the board with 31 dominos

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43
Q

who tested that more versions of the multilated checkerboard problem were more likely to lead to the principle

A

Craig Kaplan and Herbart Simon

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44
Q

what were their 4 versions of the multilated checkerboard problem?

A
  1. blank squares
  2. coloured: black and pink
  3. words black and pink
  4. words bread and butter
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45
Q

which group solved the modified mulilated checkerboard problem faster?

A

the bread and butter group

46
Q

what is the think-aloud protocol?

A

participants are asked to say out loud what they are thinking while solving a problem

47
Q

what is the goal of the think-aloud protocol?

A

determine what information the person is attending to while solving a problem

48
Q

how did Kaplan and Simon modify their multilated checkerboard problem?

A

using a story regarding Russian marriage

49
Q

what is analogical problem solving?

A

using the solution to another similar problem to guide a solution to a new problem

50
Q

what is analogical transfer?

A

transferring an experience from solving one problem to solving another

51
Q

what is a target problem?

A

the problem the participant is trying to solve

52
Q

what is the source problem?

A

another problem that shares some similarities with the target problem and illustrates a way to solve the target problem

53
Q

what was Karl Dunker’s radiation problem?

A

tumor that can only be destroyed with a high intensity ray but that ray will damage surrounding tissue, low intensities of the ray can be used to prevent tissue damage but will not affect the tumor

54
Q

who made participants read and memorize a fortress story giving them the impression they were being tested for memory

A

Gick and Holyoak

55
Q

what did Gick and Holyoak observe?

A

reading the fortress story enabled 30% of participants to solve the radiation problem because the situations were similar

56
Q

what do Gick and Holyoak propose are the 3 steps to problem solving

A
  1. noticing
  2. mapping
  3. applying
57
Q

what is noticing?

A

seeing the analogous relationship between the source of the problem and the target problem

58
Q

what is mapping?

A

the correspondence between the source problem elements and the target problem elements

59
Q

what is applying?

A

using the mapping to generate a parallel situation to the target problem

60
Q

what is analogical encoding?

A

process by which 2 problems are compared and similarities between them are determined

61
Q

who demonstrated that it is possible to get participants to notice by having them compare 2 cases that illustrate a principle

A

Dedre Genter and Susan Goldin-Meadow

62
Q

what were the 2 negotiation strategies Genter and Goldin-Meadow taught their paritcipants?

A

trade off and contingency

63
Q

what is a trade off strategy?

A

where one person says to another ill give you A if you give me B

64
Q

what is a contingency stratgey?

A

where a person gets what they want if something else happens

65
Q

after receiving 2 cases and coming up with a negotiation for both and then given a new test problem, what strategy did they tend to use

A

the same one they were exposed to in the sample cases

66
Q

what did Genter and Goldin-Meadow conclude about analogical encoding?

A

comparing source stories in an effective way gets people to pay attention to problem features that enhance their ability to solve other problems

67
Q

Kevin Dunbar coined the term ____?

A

analogical paradox

68
Q

what is analogical paradox?

A

real-world examples of analogical problem solving

69
Q

what is in-vivo problem solving research?

A

involves observing people to determine how they solve problems in real-world situaitons

70
Q

define expert

A

people who devote a large number of time to learning about a field and practicing/applying that learning

71
Q

experts solve problems __ and with ___ success rates than novices

A

faster, higher

72
Q

what are 3 differences between experts and novices?

A
  1. possess more knowledge about their fields
  2. their knowledge is organized differently
  3. spend more time analyzing problems
73
Q

who demonstrated that expertise is only an advantage in an expert’s specialty

A

James Voss

74
Q

what is divergent thinking

A

thinking that is open-ended involving a large number of potential solutions

75
Q

what is James Kaufman’s viewpoint on divergent thinkning?

A

it is the cornerstone of creativity but is not all that creativity can be

76
Q

according to Kaufman, what else can creativity be?

A
  1. a creative response must be useful

2. creativity is anything made by people that is in someway novel and has potential value or utility

77
Q

what is practical creativity?

A

involves a lengthy trial-and-error development to turn the idea into something useful

78
Q

who showed that providing examples to people before they solve a problem can influence the nature of their solutions

A

Steven Smith

79
Q

what is Alex Osborn’s group brainstorming?

A

encourages people to freely express their ideas that might be useful in solving a particular problem

80
Q

why does group brainstorming result in fewer ideas?

A

many people dominate the discussion so others are not able to participate

paying attention to others ideas keeps them from coming up with their own

81
Q

what is Ronald Finke’s creative cognition?

A

training people to think creatively

82
Q

what are pre-inventive forms?

A

ideas that precede the creation of a finished creative product

83
Q

what is the nine-dot problem?

A

draw 4 straight lines that pass through all 9 dots without lifting the pen from the paper or retracting the line

84
Q

why is the nine-dot problem difficult?

A

people’s tendency to perceive elements as grouped together

85
Q

who demonstrated that the left anterior temporal lobe is associated with grouping lower-level information into meaningful problems?

A

Richard Chi and Alan Snyder

86
Q

what did Chi and Snyder use in their experiement?

A

transcranial direct current stimulation

87
Q

how did Chi and Snyder use transcranial direct current stimulation?

A

to deactivate the left anterior temporal lobe and activate the right anterior temporal lobe

88
Q

what is transcranial direct current stimulation?

A

procedure to stimulate the brain using 2 kinds of electrodes

89
Q

what are the 2 electrodes used in transcranial direct current stimulation?

A

cathodal electrode

anodal electrode

90
Q

what does a cathodal electrode do??

A

is it negatively charged and decreases the excitability of neurons under the electrode

91
Q

what does an anodal electrode do?

A

it is positively charged and increases the excitability of neurons under the electrode

92
Q

what did Chi and Snyder observe and conclude?

A

40% could solve the nine-dot problem

deactivating the brain that causes people to interpret the world in certain ways can help someone think outside the box

93
Q

who showed whether a problem is solved by an insight-driven or analytic process is associated with the state the brain is in just before the problem is presented

A

John Kounios

94
Q

what kind of problem did Kounios use in his brain state experiment?

A

compound remote-associate problem

95
Q

what is the compound remote-associate problem?

A

when 3 words are presented and the task is to determine one word that when combined with each of these words forms a new word or phrase

96
Q

EEG activity was increased in the ___ just before insight solutions

A

frontal lobe

97
Q

EEG activity was increased in the ___ before non-sight solutions

A

occipital

98
Q

what did Kounios conclude?

A

the status of you brain before you begin a problem can influence the approach you take in solving it

99
Q

what is the default mode network?

A

brain network that decreases when a person is involved in a specific task and increases when a person is not focused on a specific task

100
Q

who connected mind wandering and creativity based on the observation that when a person is working on a problem but cannot solve it - the solution will appear when they put the problem aside

A

Benjamin Baird

101
Q

what is incubation?

A

getting ideas after taking a time out from working on a problem

102
Q

what is alternate-use task?

A

when participants have 2 minutes to come up with unusual cues for common objects

103
Q

who studied if there was a connection between creativity and DMN?

A

Naama Mayseless

104
Q

describe Maysless’ experiment

A

participants were presented with an object and had to come up with one possible use for it

105
Q

what was the key variable in Mayseless’ experiment?

A

the originality of the proposed cues

106
Q

___ originality was associated with higher activity in DMN structures

A

higher

107
Q

what is the executive control network?

A

network involved win directing attention as a person is carrying out a tasks

108
Q

who demonstrated a link between ECN and creativity?

A

Melissa Ellamil

109
Q

describe Ellamil’s experiment

A

had participants design a book cover in an fMRI to determine brain activity areas

instructed to design in 2 phases

110
Q

what were the 2 phases Ellamil has her participants design a book cover

A
  1. after reading what the book was about

2. re-evaluating what they originally designed

111
Q

what did Ellamil observe?

A

ECN and DMN activity were higher in idea evaluation than generating

112
Q

what did Ellamil conclude?

A

the ECN is associated with creative evaluation