Thinking Flashcards
What was the Gestalt approach?
They were interested in the representation and restructuring of the problem.
Solving a problem is determined by how it is represented.
Circle with four quadrants and triangle, subjects had to solve for x. When subjects realised that the radius of the circle and the diagonal of the rectangle are the same, the solution becomes easy. Subjects could solve problem simply by restructuring.
What is insight and how does it impact on problem solving?
Insight is the sudden realisation of a problem’s solution.
Metcalfe and Wiebe - gave subjects insight and noninsight problems and asked them to make a warmth judgement every 15 seconds to describe how they were going towards solving solution. Found that insight didn’t improve warmth ratings until just before solution reached. Non-insight problems involved gradual improvement.
Gestalt psychologists said that insight problems are solved due to restructuring.
How does fixation impact on problem solving?
Fixation is an obstacle. It prevents people from restructuring problems.
Functional fixedness is an issue when a person focuses on a specific characteristic or function.
Ducker, subjects were presented with matches, a box, a candle and pins. Subjects were asked to attach the candle to the wall without getting wax on the floor. When subjects realised that the box could be used not as a holder of matches, they quickly solved the problem.
Adamson showed this by presenting the box with the matches in it, vs just being an empty box.
Maier - two string problem. When subjects realised that they could use the pliers as a weight to create a pendulum, they solved quickly.
What is a mental set?
A mental set is a preconceived notion about how to solve a problem.
Lunhins - water jug problem. Subjects had to solve a problem in a certain way. The first 6 problems could be solved following a simple rule, but the last two problems could be solved using the same rule, however could be solved faster differently. Subjects generally followed the mental set established. The non-mental set group solved problems in the reverse order so there was no mental set.
What is the information-processing approach?
Problem solving a process involving search. Going from an initial state to a goal state. Each step in the process creates an intermediate state. Means-end analysis - people create subgoals within to make the problem easier to solve.
Tower of Hanoi problem - 3 pegs, 3 different sized rings. Need to get them on last peg smallest to largest.
What does the mutilated checkerboard problem teach us?
Kaplan and Simon’s mutilated checkerboard shows that the way a problem is stated impacts on problem solving. Using think-aloud protocol.
Mutilated checkerboard: black/pink; bread/butter; blank; words pink/blank
Subjects solved fastest with bread/butter.
Also used analogy of 32 mean and 32 women - need to marry them off after 2 men killed. Can’t do it
What is the analogical problem solving approach?
Using a solution to a similar problem to guide a solution to a new problem. Current problem (target problem); previous problem (source problem)
Duncker’s radiation problem - involved restructuring the problem.
Gick and Holyoak - fortress story - most people do not link analogous solutions and problems. When told to think about fortress story when in radiation problem, solving doubled.
Analogous problem solving involves 3 steps:
1) noticing - relationship between target and source problems. Most people need prompting.
2) mapping - corresponding parts between target and source.
3) applying - mapping to generate a parallel solution to target problem.
Similar surface (structural) features results in faster solving.
Analogical encoding - process where 2 problems are compared and similarities between them are determined.
How do experts solve problems?
Experts solve problems faster and with higher success rate than novices.
Expert knowledge is organised differently. Chi and co - presented physics problems to experts and non-experts and asked to sort problems. Experts arranged by physics problems, non-experts arranged by surface features.
Experts spend more time analysing problems but then have a more effective approach to the problem.
Expertise is only an advantage if in area of subject field. Can make less easy to see new ways of approaching problem.
What is creativity?
Creativity is divergent thinking that is open ended. It involves a large number of solutions.
Creative analogical problem solving (i.e. bottle in a cork removal using a bag and removal of baby from birth canal).
What is the definition of a problem?
When there is an obstacle between a present state and a goal, and not immediately obvious how to overcome obstacle.
What is inductive reasoning?
Reasoning based on observations, or reaching conclusions from evidence.
Conclusions are probably true.
What is the availability heuristic?
Events that are more easily remembered are judged as being more probable than events that are less easily remembered.
What is an illusory correlation?
Occurs when a correlation between two events appears to exist, but there is no correlation, or it is weaker than we think (i.e. stereotype).
What is the representativeness heuristic?
The probability that A is a member of class B can be determined by how well the properties of A resemble the properties we usually associate with class .
