Chapter 8: Thinking: problem solving and reasoning

Question 1

Gestalt approach to problem-solving

Answer 1

Insight: The process of problem-solving needed rerganization and restructuring of the elements of the problem situation in such a way that it resulted in a solution.
Functional fixedness: The inability to use an object appropriately in a given situation because of prior experience of using the object in a different way.
Mental set: A tern to describe the rote application of one succesful method to solve a problem which makes blind to an alternative and possibly much simpler way.

Question 2

Information processing approach to problem solving

Answer 2

Steps: 1. The construction of a problem space containing the problem and the goal phase, the instructions and limitations of a problem, and all relevant information in LTM. 2. Possible actions that achieve a goal. (state-action ree) 3. Implementation of the selected actions. 4. Evaluation of the current state if state=goal, a solution has been found.

Question 3

Problem space

Answer 3

An initial state, the goal state, the instructions, the constraints on the problem and all relevant info from LTM.

Question 4

Heuristics

Answer 4

Methods or strategies which often lead to a problem solution but are not guaranteed to succed.

Question 5

Problem reduction

Answer 5

Turn the problem into smaller sub-problems.

Question 6

Means-ends analysis

Answer 6

A heuristic that reduce the distance between current state and goal by solving a subproblem.

Question 7

Problem representation

Answer 7

People in well-defined problems use functional or domain because they can applied to many situations.

Question 8

Impasse

Answer 8

A sort of mental ‘blank’experienced when trying to solve a problem, which is accompanied by a subjective feeling of not knowing what to do. Two ways to overcome impaase: 1. chunk decomposition and 2. constraint relaxation.

Question 9

Problem-solving analogy

Answer 9

We usually do not have the knowledge that’s directly relevant to a problem, but often a problem resembles something we’ve encountered before, and we can use analogy. The ‘mapping’of information can help us transfer knowledge to the target problem, or matching relationships.

Question 10

Deductive and inductive resoning

Answer 10

Criteria of problem-solving activities:
1. The activities are goal-directed to achieve a target state.
2. In achieving that, a sequence of mental process need to be involved.
3. These processes have to be distinctly cognitive.
A. In deductive reasoning the conclusion is certain.
B. In inductive reasoning the conlcusion is probably but not necessarily true.

Question 11

Deductive reasoning

Answer 11

Rules of interference: 1. Modus ponens: If x, then y. If x is given you know y. 2. Modus tolens: If x then y. Not y, not x. There are 4 correct forms: All A are B. Some A are B. No A is B. Some A are not B.