The Psychology of Problem Solving 1st edition by Janet Davidson, Robert Sternberg ISBN 0521797411 978-0521797412

PART 1 INTRODUCTION

1 Recognizing, Defining, and Representing Problems

THE PROBLEM-SOLVING CYCLE

CLASSES OF PROBLEMS

PROBLEM RECOGNITION, DEFINITION, AND REPRESENTATION

KNOWLEDGE

Everyday Knowledge and Problem Definition and Problem Representation

Expert Knowledge and Problem Definition and Problem Representation

Problem Recognition

COGNITIVE PROCESSES AND STRATEGIES

Processes in Problem Recognition

Processes in Problem Definition and Representation

INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES: ABILITIES AND DISPOSITIONS

SOCIAL CONTEXT

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS

What We Know

What We Need to Know

REFERENCES

AUTHOR NOTE

2 The Acquisition of Expert Performance as Problem Solving

OUTLINE OF THE CHAPTER

Approaches to the Study of Problem Solving and Thinking: Historical Background

Initial Attempts to Study Thinking

Behaviorism and Studies of Thinking

Gestalt Psychology and Human Information-Processing Psychology

Some Conclusions From Traditional Laboratory Studies of Problem Solving

The Search for Generalizable Capacities and Processes

Do Basic, Invariant Processes and Capacities Mediate Performance on Laboratory Tasks?

Capturing Processes With Representative Tasks From Everyday Life: Another Approach

THE SCIENTIFIC STUDY OF EXPERT PERFORMANCE

Capturing Expert Performance Under Standardized Controlled Conditions

CAPTURED EXPERT PERFORMANCE AND PROBLEM SOLVING

Analysis of Superior Representative Performance With Experiments and Process Tracing

Analyzing Expert Performance in Chess

Expert Performance Characterized by Superior Speed

The Acquisition of Expert Performance Requiring Increased Control

Summary

Acquiring Expert Levels of Performance: The Role of Experience and Problem Solving

Skill Acquisition in Everyday Life and in the Laboratory

The Acquisition of Expert Performance

Necessary Conditions for the Acquisition of Expert-Level Performance: Experience and Deliberate Prac

The Acquisition of Mechanisms Mediating Expert Performance Through Deliberate Practice

Acquiring Mechanisms Mediating Expert Performance in Chess

Educational Systems Supporting the Development of Expert Performance in Music

CONCLUDING REMARKS

REFERENCES

AUTHOR NOTES

PART II RELEVANT ABILITIES AND SKILLS

3 Is Success or Failure at Solving Complex Problems Related to Intellectual Ability?

INTRODUCTION

DEFINITIONS AND CLARIFICATIONS

Simple and Complex Problems

Intellectual Ability

Evaluation Criteria

INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES IN COMPLEX EXPLICIT PROBLEM SOLVING

CEPS and Global Intelligence

Evaluation of Approach

CEPS and Specific Intelligence Components

Evaluation of Approach

Global Intelligence and Expertise

Evaluation of Approach

Task and Subject Properties Affecting Complex Explicit Problem Solving

Semantic Embeddedness

Time Lag and Feedback Delay

Intervention vs. Observation

Strategies

Evaluation of Approach

IMPLICIT PROBLEM SOLVING

The Tasks

Empirical Evidence

Implicit Learning and Intellectual Ability

Doubts and Alternative Accounts

Evaluation of Approach

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS

REFERENCES

4 Creativity: A Source of Difficulty in Problem Solving

NECESSITY IS THE MOTHER OF INVENTION

COGNITIVE AND CONATIVE FACTORS FOR CREATIVE THOUGHT

ENVIRONMENT

PUTTING TOGETHER COGNITIVE AND CONATIVE FACTORS

COGNITION AND CONATION IN ACTION: THE CREATIVE PROCESS

CREATIVITY AS A SOURCE OF DIFFICULTY IN PROBLEM SOLVING: ANOTHER LOOK

CONCLUSION

REFERENCES

5 Insights about Insightful Problem Solving

HISTORICAL CONTEXT FOR INSIGHT: THE GESTALT APPROACH

THE NOTHING-SPECIAL APPROACH

THE PUZZLE-PROBLEM APPROACH

Mental Processes

Selective Encoding

Selective Combination

Selective Comparison

The Roles of Incubation

Forgetting

Opportunistic Assimilation

The Role of Affect

THE GREAT-MINDS APPROACH

Intrinsic Motivation

Identification of an Impasse

Social Interaction

conclusions

REFERENCES

6 The Role of Working Memory in Problem Solving

THE GOAL AND ORGANIZATION OF THIS CHAPTER

WHAT IS A PROBLEM?

Working Memory as a Unifying Construct

Working Memory and Problem Solving

The Slave Systems

Comprehension

Reasoning

Insight Tasks

The Central Executive

Comprehension

Multiple Working Memory Capacities?

Reasoning and Fluid Intelligence

Insight Tasks

Problem Solving Difficulties

Adult Age and Problem-Solving Difficulties

Summary and Conclusion

WHEN IS WORKING MEMORY CAPACITY IMPORTANT?

Dichotic Listening Task

Antisaccade Task

WHEN IS WORKING MEMORY CAPACITY IMPORTANT? A BROADER PERSPECTIVE

The Knowledge-Is-Power Hypothesis

Compensation Hypothesis

Basic Mechanism Hypothesis

Rich-Get-Richer Hypothesis

Relevant Evidence

Memory for Baseball Games

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS

REFERENCES

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

7 Comprehension of Text in Problem Solving

FIVE LEVELS OF TEXT REPRESENTATION

THE IMPORTANCE OF TEXT REPRESENTATION FOR PROBLEM SOLVING

THE IMPORTANCE OF THE READER IN COMPREHENDING TEXT FOR PROBLEM SOLVING

THREE CLASSES OF MODELS OF TEXT COMPREHENSION

Knowledge Structure Models

Construction-Integration Model

Embodied Cognition Model

REFERENCES

PART III STATES AND STRATEGIES

8 Motivating Self-Regulated Problem Solvers

EXPANDING CONCEPTIONS OF PROBLEM SOLVING

Problem Solving in Formal and Informal Contexts

Problem Solving by Experts and Novices

SELF-REGULATORY PROCESSES UNDERLYING PROBLEM SOLVING

Forethought Phase

Performance Phase

Self-Reflection Phase

Self-Regulation of Problem Solving in Informal Contexts

INVESTIGATING MONTIVATIONAL PROCESSES DURING PROBLEM SOLVING

Goal Setting

Self-Efficacy Expectations

Intrinsic Interest

Goal Orientation

Strategy Use

Self-Monitoring

Self-Evaluation Judgments

Attribution Judgments

EDUCATIONAL IMPLICATIONS

CONCLUSION

REFERENCES

9 Feeling and Thinking: Implications for Problem Solving

INTRODUCTION

ELEMENTS OF PROBLEM SOLVING

AFFECT, MOODS, AND EMOTIONS

FEELINGS AND EVALUATIONS

Moods

Implications for Problem Solving

Is There a Problem?

Am I Likely to Attain the Goal?

How Am I Doing?

Accepting a Solution

Summary

FEELINGS AND PROCESSING STYLES: COGNITIVE TUNING

Moods

An Illustration: Moods and the Use of Scripts

Bodily Feedback

Situational Cues

Implications for Problem Solving

Person Perception

Persuasion

Covariation Detection

Analytic Reasoning Tasks and Logic Problems

Decision Making

Categorization

Remote Associates

Creativity and Insight

Analogies

Summary

FEELINGS AND THOUGHT CONTENT: AFFECTIVE TONE

Implications for Problem Solving

A NOTE ON SPECIFIC EMOTIONS

Emotions as a Source of Information

Emotions and Processing Style

CONCLUDING REMARKS

REFERENCES

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

10 The Fundamental Computational Biases of Human Cognition

THE FUNDAMENTAL COMPUTATIONAL BIASES

Automatic Contextualization: The Use of Prior Knowledge and Context

The Tendency to “Socialize” Abstract Problems

Seeing Intentional Design in Random Events

The Narrative Mode of Thought

THE EVOLUTIONARY ADAPTIVENESS OF THE FUNDAMENTAL COMPUTATIONAL BIASES

FACILITATING REASONING BY FITTING PROBLEMS TO THE FUNDAMENTAL COMPUTATIONAL BIASES

THE FUNDAMENTAL COMPUTATIONAL BIASES AND THE PROBLEMS OF MODERN SOCIETY

ABSTRACTION AND THE FUNDAMENTAL COMPUTATIONAL BIASES IN EDUCATION

REFERENCES

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

11 Analogical Transfer in Problem Solving

SIMILARITY IN SURFACE AND STRUCTURE

EFFECTS OF SURFACE AND STRUCTURAL SIMILARITY ON ACCESS AND APPLICATION

Spontaneous Transfer

Informed Transfer

UNDERSTANDING AND STRUCTURAL ABSTRACTION

EFFECTS OF SURFACE ON STRUCTURAL ABSTRACTION

Inferred Symmetry and Asymmetry

Inferred Continuity and Discreteness

SUMMARY AND CONCLUDING REMARKS

REFERENCES

PART IV CONCLUSIONS AND INTEGRATION

12 Problem Solving – Large/Small, Hard/Easy, Conscious/Nonconscious, Problem-Space/ Problem-Solver

REFERENCES

Index