Should information be redundantly distributed among group members? Effective use of group memory in collaborative problem solving

This study examined the relation between the redundancy in task assignment and group performance. It was predicted that assigning items to group members too redundantly would undermine group problem‐solving performance. To test this prediction, dyads and triads engaged in a problem‐solving task. A logic puzzle solvable with seven clues was employed as the task. Participants were asked to memorize the clues before engaging in group problem solving. In the shared condition, all seven clues were assigned to each group member. In the unshared condition, a portion of the seven clues was assigned to each member. Unshared triads whose members were assigned the smallest number of clues were most likely to return the correct solution. This result suggests that less redundant item assignment led to successful problem solving via information pooling among group members. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Motivated to confront: How experiencing anger affects anchoring bias

Prior research has asserted that emotions affect anchoring bias in decision making through the emotion's certainty appraisal or through the emotion's action tendencies, but these prior studies investigate the role of each component—appraisal or action tendency—without accounting for potential effects of the other one. The current research investigates whether anger exerts a significant effect on anchoring bias by activating a desire to confront a potential anchor. Importantly, the studies compare the effect of anger versus disgust, emotions that differ in their action tendency but are similar in their certainty appraisal. In Study 1, participants completed an emotion induction task and then a negotiation task where the first offer from the negotiation partner served as a potential anchor. Anger led to more deviation from the anchor compared with disgust or neutral feelings. Subsequent studies provide evidence that the angry participants are less anchored when the anchor value comes from a more confrontable source (someone else vs. themselves in Study 2 and an out‐group member vs. an in‐group member in Study 3).     

Self‐Concept Clarity and the Management of Social Conflict

ABSTRACT: In 4 studies we examined the relationship between self‐concept clarity and conflict management. Individuals with higher self‐concept clarity were overall more active and showed more cooperative problem‐solving behavior than people with low self‐concept clarity. There were no relationships with contending or yielding. The positive relationship with cooperative behavior was mediated by less rumination (Study 2) and moderated by conflict intensity (Study 3). Specifically, it applied to relatively mild conflicts (Study 3). Finally, Study 4 extended these findings to the group level: Dyad members with higher self‐concept clarity engaged in problem solving, whereas dyad members with lower self‐concept clarity did not. We conclude that higher self‐concept clarity associates with proactive problem solving in social conflict.     

Who’s bringing the donuts: The role of affective patterns in group decision making

Two studies examined how intragroup affective patterns influence groups’ pervasive tendency to ignore the unique expertise of their members. Using a hidden profile task, Study 1 provided evidence that groups with at least one member experiencing positive affect shared more unique information than groups composed entirely of members experiencing neutral affect. This occurred because group members experiencing positive affect were more likely to initiate unique information sharing, as well as information seeking. Study 2 built upon this base by showing that confidence mediates the relationship between positive affect and the initiation of unique information sharing. Additionally, Study 2 investigated the role of negative affect in group decision making and how negative and positive affect concurrently influence decision making when groups are composed of members experiencing each. The results are discussed in terms of the role affect plays in influencing group behavior and the resultant importance of investigating specific affective patterns.     

Strategic demonstration of problem solutions by groups: The effects of member preferences,confidence, and learning goals

Research indicates that groups perform best, and their members learn the most, when they solve problems with demonstrably correct solutions. These outcomes are often attributed to correct members demonstrating to incorrect members how to solve such problems. However, because few studies have directly observed group interaction (Moreland, Swanenburg, Flagg, & Fetterman, 2010), the extent to which correct members actually demonstrate problem solutions remains unclear. Assuming that groups are strategic and desire to solve problems both accurately and efficiently, we predicted that initially correct minorities would be more likely than initially correct majorities to demonstrate problem solutions. Results from two studies support this prediction, in the form of member behavioral intentions (Study 1) and observed group interaction processes (Study 2). Study 1 also highlights the role of confidence in this effect, while Study 2 reveals that demonstration is overall more likely when groups have a goal that encourages member learning.     

Leveraging member expertise to improve knowledge transfer and demonstrability in groups

Group success is dependent on both the knowledge of group members and the extent to which the group can access this knowledge. This research focuses on promoting effective knowledge transfer in group members by facilitating their use of extant knowledge when solving novel problems and examines how this affects subsequent discussion, decision making, and performance. Participants (N = 540) answered a series of estimation items individually or in a group. Sessions were recorded to provide insight into the group interactions. Facilitating knowledge transfer promoted (a) a more effective dialogue in which members were able to share more of their knowledge and discuss member expertise, (b) groups giving greater weight to better member preferences in their decision-making process, and (c) improved group performance relative to both average comparison individuals and to groups operating without this intervention. The effectiveness of promoting knowledge transfer in a group context relative to an individual context is discussed and group superiority is related to the concept of task demonstrability.     

Priming uniquely human emotions and the in‐group (but not the out‐group) activates humanity concepts

Documenting the behavioural consequences of infra‐humanization, Vaes, Paladino, Castelli, Leyens, and Giovanazzi ( 2003 ) found that, in comparison to in‐group members, out‐group members are discriminated against when they express uniquely human emotions. It was assumed that expressing a uniquely human emotion makes an in‐group member, at least tacitly, more human than an out‐group member. Two studies tested this assumption and found, as predicted, that the human concept was more activated in an in‐group compared to an out‐group context when group members were associated with uniquely human emotions. The possible impact of valence was controlled for, showing that both positive and negative emotions endorsed the same effects (Study 1) and that the activation of the human concept was not a side effect of increased positivity (Study 2). The discussion focuses on the implications of the present studies and suggests new avenues of research. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Teaching students to solve insight problems: Evidence for domain specificity in creativity training

The purpose of this research was to investigate whether insight problem solving depends on domain‐specific or domain‐general problem‐solving skills, that is, whether people think in terms of conceptually different types of insight problems. In Study 1, participants sorted insight problems into categories. A cluster analysis revealed 4 main categories of insight problems: verbal, mathematical, spatial, and a combination of verbal or spatial. In Studies 2 and 3, participants received training in how to solve verbal, spatial, or mathematical problems, or all 3 types. They were taught that solutions to verbal insight problems lie in defining and analyzing the terms in the problem, solutions to mathematical insight problems lie in a novel approach to numbers, or solutions to spatial insight problems lie in removing a self‐imposed constraint. In both studies, the spatial trained group performed better than the verbal trained group on spatial problems but not on other types of problems. These findings are consistent with the idea that people mentally separate insight problems into distinct types. Implications for instruction in insight problem solving are discussed.     

Cognitive Factors Affecting the Use of Social Decision Heuristics in Resource-Sharing Tasks

Two experiments investigated the use of equal division as a social decision heuristic in a group resource-sharing task. We proposed that group members use equality as a decision heuristic to the extent that environmental cues making the rule salient are present and to the extent that competing cues are absent. In Study 1, subjects were provided with justification for being the first group member to withdraw resources from a common pool. The results showed that subjects for whom the justification was prototypical of resource-sharing situations were more likely to violate equality than were subjects with nonprototypical justifications. Study 2 investigated the extent to which arbitrary role assignments within a group affect choice behavior. As predicted, subjects assigned the role of "supervisor" made resource requests that exceeded an equal share, whereas subjects assigned the roles of either "leader" or "guide" made choices that corresponded almost precisely with equal division. Our results underscore the importance of examining implicit knowledge structures about resource-sharing situations and their implications for choice.     

Enhancing Digital Fluency through a Training Program for Creative Problem Solving Using Computer Programming

The purpose of this paper is to propose a training program for creative problem solving based on computer programming. The proposed program will encourage students to solve real‐life problems through a creative thinking spiral related to cognitive skills with computer programming. With the goal of enhancing digital fluency through this proposed training program, we investigated its effects. Two sets of experiments were performed in which 119 typical students and 30 younger, gifted students participated. Two synthetic creative problem solving tests, which had a high correlation with logical ability, scientific problem solving ability and divergent thinking ability, were developed to measure creative problem solving ability. We provided the treatment group with a paper‐based booklet with relevant problems developed specifically for that group. ANCOVA statistical procedures were used to analyze the pre‐ and post‐synthetic creative problem solving tests. The findings of our study are as follows: with typical students, the originality of the treatment group outperformed the control group, a result that was compatible with previous research. With gifted students, the fluency of the treatment group outperformed the control group, and overall creative problem solving ability was enhanced. Remarkably, fluency increased significantly, a notable difference from the results of prior studies. In conclusion, we inferred that, given the definition of digital fluency, if creative problem solving ability is enhanced by a training program for creative problem solving based on computer programming, digital fluency will ultimately be improved. In this paper, we discuss the result of fluency enhancement that contradicts prior research. We suggest that this training program could be a new learning environment for the students who have grown up with digital media.     

Vicarious moral licensing: the influence of others' past moral actions on moral behavior

This article investigates the effect of others' prior nonprejudiced behavior on an individual's subsequent behavior. Five studies supported the hypothesis that people are more willing to express prejudiced attitudes when their group members' past behavior has established nonprejudiced credentials. Study 1a showed that participants who were told that their group was more moral than similar other groups were more willing to describe a job as better suited for Whites than for African Americans. In Study 1b, when given information on group members' prior nondiscriminatory behavior (selecting a Hispanic applicant in a prior task), participants subsequently gave more discriminatory ratings to the Hispanic applicant for a position stereotypically suited for majority members (Whites). In Study 2, moral self-concept mediated the effect of others' prior nonprejudiced actions on a participant's subsequent prejudiced behavior such that others' past nonprejudiced actions enhanced the participant's moral self-concept, and this inflated moral self-concept subsequently drove the participant's prejudiced ratings of a Hispanic applicant. In Study 3, the moderating role of identification with the credentialing group was tested. Results showed that participants expressed more prejudiced attitudes toward a Hispanic applicant when they highly identified with the group members behaving in nonprejudiced manner. In Study 4, the credentialing task was dissociated from the participants' own judgmental task, and, in addition, identification with the credentialing group was manipulated rather than measured. Consistent with prior studies, the results showed that participants who first had the opportunity to view an in-group member's nonprejudiced hiring decision were more likely to reject an African American man for a job stereotypically suited for majority members. These studies suggest a vicarious moral licensing effect.     

Stereotyping and action tendencies attribution as a function of available emotional information

In three experiments, we addressed the role of stereotypes in the attribution of action tendencies in intergroup contexts. We hypothesized that stereotyping would affect the attribution of action tendencies to out‐group members. Participants were presented with a facial expression displayed by either an in‐group or an out‐group member, followed by the presentation of a label describing an action tendency. They were then asked whether the label corresponded to the feeling state of the expresser. Study 1 tested whether stereotypes influence the attribution of action tendencies to out‐group members. Study 2 tested whether stereotype application varies as a function of the emotional information contained in the facial stimuli (i.e. neutral vs. emotional). Finally, Study 3 tested whether stereotype activation is indirectly determined by a difference in morphology between in‐group and out‐group members or directly determined by the expresser's group membership. As predicted, an increase in attribution of stereotypic action tendencies was observed for out‐group expressers. The application of stereotypes was specifically observed when facial expressions were neutral as compared to emotional and was independent of morphological differences between in‐group and out‐group faces. Such biases in interpreting out‐group members feeling states may play a crucial role in the maintenance of intergroup prejudice. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Trust and Acceptance in Response to References to Group Membership: Minority and Majority Perspectives on Cross‐Group Interactions1

This research examined anticipated feelings of trust and acceptance in cross‐group interactions among members of ethnic minority and majority groups, depending on whether an out‐group member referred to their group membership. In Study 1, Asian, Latino, and White participants read scenarios describing interactions between them and an in‐group member, an out‐group member, or an out‐group member who referred to their group membership. Participants from each group responded more negatively toward interactions with out‐group members when they referred to group membership. These findings were replicated in Study 2 with samples of Black and White participants, also showing that anticipated prejudice partially mediated the effects of out‐group members' references to group membership on feelings of trust and acceptance. Implications of these findings are discussed in terms of facilitating intergroup communication and conversations about group differences.     

The Power of a “Maverick” in Collaborative Problem Solving: An Experimental Investigation of Individual Perspective‐Taking Within a Group

Integrating different perspectives is a sophisticated strategy for developing constructive interactions in collaborative problem solving. However, cognitive aspects such as individuals’ knowledge and bias often obscure group consensus and produce conflict. This study investigated collaborative problem solving, focusing on a group member interacting with another member having a different perspective (a “maverick”). It was predicted that mavericks might mitigate disadvantages and facilitate perspective taking during problem solving. Thus, 344 university students participated in two laboratory‐based experiments by engaging in a simple rule‐discovery task that raised conflicts among perspectives. They interacted with virtual partners whose conversations were controlled by multiple conversational agents. Results show that when participants interacted with a maverick during the task, they were able to take others’ perspectives and integrate different perspectives to solve the problem. Moreover, when participants interacted in groups with a positive mood, groups with a maverick outperformed groups having several perspectives.     

Culture and well-being: the cycle of action, evaluation, and decision

Two studies were conducted to examine how European and Asian Americans experience and remember their task performance, make a decision about a future task, and how that decision affects enjoyment of the task. In Study 1, although Asians solved as many anagrams as European Americans, Asians remembered solving fewer than did European Americans at Time 2. European Americans' Time 2 choice of task was predicted from Time 1 performance, but Asians' Time 2 choice was not. In Study 2, European Americans chose the same task if they had previously done well and a different task if they had not. Their actual enjoyment of the Time 2 task, furthermore, was significantly higher than at Time 1. In contrast, there was no change in actual enjoyment of the task at Time 2 among Asians because their choice was not based on their performance at Time 1.     

Reciprocal and complementary sibling interactions,relationship quality and socio‐emotional problem solving

Associations between reciprocal and complementary sibling interactions, sibling relationship quality, and children's socio‐emotional problem solving were examined in 40 grade 5–6 children (M age = 11.5 years) from middle class, Caucasian, Canadian families using a multi‐method approach (i.e. interviews, self‐report questionnaires, daily diary checklist, narrative task). Findings demonstrated that reciprocal sibling interactions were positively associated with warmth, mutual esteem, happy daily exchanges, and negatively related to rivalry and dominance, whereas complementary interactions were positively related to upsetting daily exchanges. Further, reciprocal and complementary interactions differed significantly in relation to several relationship qualities, with reciprocal interactions emerging as a significantly stronger correlate of happy exchanges. Only reciprocal interactions were positively correlated with socio‐emotional problem solving. Finally, birth order moderated the negative association of reciprocal interactions with rivalry and dominance and the positive association with socio‐emotional problem solving. In each case, the effect was stronger for younger members of the sibling dyad. Findings are discussed in light of recent theory on the sibling relationship and children's development. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Effects of Differing Knowledge Transfer Strategies on Group Decision Making and Performance

Encouraging reflection on one's existing knowledge in a group setting increases shared understanding, makes information available for problem solving, and makes it easier for members to show and to be shown the merit of others' preferences. However, it is also possible that attempting to constrain the process by which problem solvers manage this reflection process may prevent them from effectively tailoring their approach to different problems. The current research focuses on how the nature of different knowledge transfer strategies impacts problem solving processes and outcomes by examining manipulations of, or constraints to, problem solvers' approach to knowledge transfer. Participants were directed to generate associated knowledge in preparation for answering a series of estimation items, either in a group or individually. We found that groups using a shared reflection process (as opposed to reflecting at an individual member level) were able to give more weight to the inputs of their more expert members and that groups outperformed individuals. We discuss the process of promoting knowledge transfer in a group context relative to an individual context and relate this to the concept of task demonstrability. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effort in the face of difference: Feeling like a non‐prototypical group member motivates effort

Three studies examined the relationship between individuals' perceived “prototypicality” in a group, their subsequent self‐presentation goals, and individual effort in that group. Consistent with the finding that feelings of marginal ingroup membership status elicit a desire to seek stronger social connections within ingroups, we predicted that non‐prototypical group members will have more salient self‐presentation goals than prototypical members, and as such will exert more individual effort to exhibit the value of their membership to the group. Correlational Study 1 confirmed that non‐prototypical group members may be more likely than prototypical members to volunteer for activities that would benefit their group. Two experimental studies were then conducted to test the causal influence of feelings of prototypicality while also identifying theoretically relevant moderating conditions of perceived task efficacy (Study 2) and public versus private task performance (Study 3). These findings suggest that effortful performance in groups is partly motivated by the desire to foster social ties. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Deviant but desirable: Group variability and evaluation of atypical group members

Two studies investigated how group variability affects reactions to atypical group members. In Study 1 (N = 65) we manipulated group variability and found that an atypical group member was evaluated more positively when the group was heterogeneous than when the group was homogeneous. In Study 2 (N = 276) we also manipulated group value and found a significant interaction whereby an atypical group member was evaluated more positively when the group was homogeneous and group members valued heterogeneity, but was evaluated more negatively when the group was heterogeneous and group members valued homogeneity. The results suggest that deviant or atypical members will not inevitably be rejected by the group, but rather that reactions to deviance are shaped and guided by the dynamic relationship between how the group is perceived by its members and their ideological beliefs about what is good for the group.