Problem solving is an integral part of everyday life yet few books are dedicated to this important aspect of human cognition. In each case, the problem, such as solving a crossword or writing an essay, has a goal. In this comprehensive and timely textbook, the author discusses the psychological processes underlying such goal-directed problem solving, and examines both how we learn from experience of problem solving and how our learning transfers (or often fails to transfer) from one situation to another. Following initial coverage of the methods we use to solve unfamiliar problems, the book goes on to examine the psychological processes involved in novice problem solving before progressing to the methods and processes used by skilled problem solvers or ''experts''. Topics covered include: how we generate a useful representation of a problem as a starting point; general problem solving strategies we use in unfamiliar situations; possible processes involved in insight or lateral thinking; the nature of problem similarity and the role of analogies in problem solving; understanding and learning from textbooks; and how we develop expertise through the learning of specific problem solving skills. Clear, up-to-date and accessible, Problem Solving will be of interest to undergraduates and postgraduates in cognitive psychology, cognitive science, and educational psychology. The focus on the practical transfer of learning through problem solving will also make it of relevance to educationalists and business psychologists.
Author(s): S. Ian Robertson
Edition: 1
Publisher: Psychology Press
Year: 2001
Language: English
Pages: 288
Book Cover......Page 1
Half-Title......Page 2
Title......Page 3
Copyright......Page 4
Dedication......Page 5
Contents......Page 6
Illustrations......Page 10
Preface......Page 13
PART ONE Introduction......Page 15
WHAT IS A PROBLEM?......Page 16
Knowledge needed to solve novel problems......Page 19
Different types of goal......Page 20
Well-defined and ill-defined problems......Page 21
Problems sharing the same structure......Page 22
METHODS OF INVESTIGATING PROBLEM SOLVING......Page 23
Protocol analysis......Page 24
Artificial intelligence models......Page 25
The problem of transfer of learning......Page 26
SUMMARY......Page 27
PART TWO Problem representation and problem-solving processes......Page 29
Part Two: Introduction......Page 30
THE INFORMATION-PROCESSING APPROACH......Page 32
ANALYSING WELL-DEFINED PROBLEMS......Page 35
State-action spaces......Page 36
THE INTERACTION OF THE PROBLEM SOLVER AND THE TASK ENVIRONMENT......Page 41
HEURISTIC SEARCH STRATEGIES......Page 42
Hill climbing......Page 43
Means-ends analysis......Page 47
SUMMARY......Page 50
BUILDING A PROBLEM REPRESENTATION......Page 52
RE-REPRESENTING PROBLEMS......Page 53
Find an analogous solution......Page 54
GESTALT ACCOUNTS OF PROBLEM SOLVING......Page 55
Set effects......Page 57
Insight as a special property......Page 62
Kaplan and Simon’s account of insight......Page 63
Keane’s information-processing explanation of functional fixedness......Page 64
Ohlsson’s theory of insight......Page 66
Completing the solution......Page 68
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN INSIGHT PROBLEMS AND OTHER PROBLEMS......Page 70
INFLUENCING PROBLEM REPRESENTATIONS: THE EFFECT OF INSTRUCTIONS......Page 73
SUMMARY......Page 74
PART THREE Analogical problem solving......Page 76
Part Three: Introduction......Page 77
CHAPTER FOUR Transfer of learning......Page 79
POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE TRANSFER......Page 80
HYPOTHESIS TESTING THEORY......Page 81
TRANSFER IN WELL-DEFINED PROBLEMS......Page 83
Declarative and procedural knowledge......Page 86
Identical productions theory of transfer......Page 89
GENERAL TRANSFER......Page 96
Representational transfer......Page 97
WHAT KINDS OF KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER?......Page 98
SUMMARY......Page 99
TYPES OF SIMILARITY......Page 101
Structural similarities and differences......Page 102
Surface similarity......Page 105
Semantic constraints on analogising......Page 109
Proportional analogies......Page 110
Relational similarity: Reproductive or productive?......Page 111
Relational elements theory......Page 114
Gentner’s structure-mapping theory......Page 115
Mapping one structure on to another......Page 117
PRAGMATIC CONSTRAINTS......Page 118
THE RELATION BETWEEN SURFACE AND STRUCTURAL SIMILARITY......Page 119
SUMMARY......Page 121
THE IMPORTANCE OF ANALOGISING......Page 123
STUDIES OF ANALOGICAL PROBLEM SOLVING......Page 124
ACCESSING A SOURCE TO SOLVE A TARGET......Page 127
Principle cueing......Page 128
Using an example as an analogy......Page 130
Flowing waters or teeming crowds: Mental models of electricity......Page 132
Giora’s study......Page 134
The influence of far and near analogies......Page 135
Influencing thought......Page 136
“AESTHETIC” ANALOGIES......Page 137
SUMMARY......Page 138
CHAPTER SEVEN Textbook problem solving......Page 140
Assumed recall of already presented information......Page 141
Assumptions about generalisation......Page 142
THE ROLE OF EXAMPLES IN TEXTBOOKS......Page 143
THE PROCESSES INVOLVED IN TEXTBOOK PROBLEM SOLVING......Page 145
LABORATORY STUDIES OF WITHIN-DOMAIN AND TEXTBOOK PROBLEM SOLVING......Page 147
UNDERSTANDING PROBLEMS REVISITED......Page 151
THE ROLE OF DIAGRAMS AND PICTURES IN AIDING UNDERSTANDING......Page 152
Bridging analogies and intermediate representations......Page 153
PROVIDING A SCHEMA IN TEXTS......Page 155
SUMMARY......Page 156
PART FOUR Learning and the development of expertise......Page 158
Part Four: Introduction......Page 159
INDUCTION......Page 160
SCHEMA INDUCTION......Page 161
SCHEMA-BASED KNOWLEDGE......Page 163
Production system architectures......Page 165
SKILL LEARNING IN ACT-R......Page 169
Production memory in ACT-R......Page 171
Learning in ACT-R......Page 172
CRITICISMS OF PRODUCTION-SYSTEM MODELS......Page 174
NEUROLOGICAL EVIDENCE FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF PROCEDURAL KNOWLEDGE......Page 177
SUMMARY......Page 178
WHAT DISTINGUISHES EXPERTS AND NOVICES......Page 180
ARE EXPERTS SMARTER? ARE THERE DIFFERENCES IN ABILITIES?......Page 181
SKILL DEVELOPMENT......Page 184
The intermediate effect......Page 185
KNOWLEDGE ORGANISATION......Page 186
Schema development and the effects of automatisation......Page 187
Flexibility in thinking......Page 188
COGNITIVE PROCESSES......Page 190
The role of perception in skilled performance......Page 191
The role of memory in expert performance......Page 192
The writing process......Page 194
SUMMARY......Page 199
Operators......Page 201
PROBLEM REPRESENTATION......Page 202
TRANSFER......Page 203
LEARNING......Page 204
CHAPTER 5......Page 207
CHAPTER 10......Page 208
References......Page 216
Author index......Page 230
Subject index......Page 235
