expertise Flashcards
what is a well-defined problem
all aspects of the problem are specified and there is one optimal strategy and one right answer
what is an ill-defined problem
underspecified goals
what is the difference between knowledge-rich and knowledge-lean problems
rich can only be solved by individuals possessing specific knowledge
lean doesn’t require the possession of specific knowledge
Thorndike approach to problem solving
trial and error learning
gestaltist approach to problem solving
focussed on the more complex, productive thinking and insight
what is insight?
it is the sudden restructuring of a problem and can be described as an ‘ah-ha’ experience
how does insight occur?
representational change theory, re-coding and elaboration
computational approach - Newell & Simon
general problem solver-computer is designed to solve numerous well-defined problems
what are the three problem-solving strategies for limited capacity?
- heuristics
- algorithms
- means-ends analysis
what is heuristics?
rules of thumbs, often no clear idea of structure and focusing on short-term goals
what is algorithms?
has methods of procedures for solving a problem, it uses mathematics
what is means-end analysis?
the individual acknowledges the difference between the current state of the problem an the goal state. to bridge the difference the come up with a sub-goal
evaluation of Newell and Simon’s computational framework
strength - approach works well for well-defined problems
weakness - everyday life problems are ill-defined
what is analogical problem solving
it involves similarities between current problems and past solved problems
how does analogical problem-solving occur?
1) detecting similarities between problems
whether its superficial, structural or procedural
when is analogical problem solving used?
used when direct knowledge does not exist and depends on working-memory components
what makes an expert?
chase and simon suggest expertise occurs due to a chucking theory, that detailed information is stored in LTM
what is the template theory?
has an abstract schematic structure. it contains a core with slots
what does the template theory predict?
chess positions are stored in three large templates and this knowledge can be accessed rapidly
template theory evaluation ..
strengths- evidence supports notion that board positions are stored in a few templates
limitations - doesn’t explain adaptive expertise
what is the divide between implicit and explicit metal expertise?
explicit - slow and deliberate, analytic
implicit - automatic, global and gist-based
diagnosing with experts and novices
- pathologists spent less time examining each slide
more info was extracted upon fixation (global impression)
medial expertise research evaluation ..
strength-medical experts rely on automatic processes (implicit) and out perform non-experts
weakness- danger of underestimating analytic processing
similarities between chess and medical experts …
ability to make flexible use of analytic processes
large a accessible store of relevant knowledge
differences between medial experts and chess experts ..
in chess the knowledge is stored in abstract templates, less so for medical experts
medicine face a more narrowly focused task
how does deliberate practice work?
different reliance on working memory versus long-term memory
experts rely on LTM
evidence for deliberate practice
Sf increased his digit span from 7 to 80 digits over two years of extensive practice
however natural ability can be important (musical instruments)
evaluation of deliberate practice ..
strengths - most experts develop superior LTM
weaknesses - deliberate practice isn’t relevant to all skills
