Facilitation and transfer with narrative thematic versions of the THOG task

This article reports two experiments investigating the use of narrative form in the presentation of thematic versions of Wason's (1977) THOG problem. Experiment 1 demonstrated that narrative thematic versions that use actions of characters to present the elements of the problem are easier to solve than the classic version. This result was found both for a problem that used thematic examples and for a problem that used the same geometric figures as the classic THOG. Results also suggested that the presence of a character who creates the comparison properties to be used in applying the disjunction rule was useful in separating those properties from the properties of the positive example. Experiment 2 demonstrated that the solution of a narrative thematic version of the THOG could lead to improved performance on the classic abstract THOG, but only when the examples in the narrative version were the geometric figures. Issues of transfer with the THOG problem are discussed.     

Younger apes and human children plan their moves in a maze task

Planning defined as the predetermination of a sequence of actions towards some goal is crucial for complex problem solving. To shed light on the evolution of executive functions, we investigated the ontogenetic and phylogenetic origins of planning. Therefore, we presented all four great apes species (N = 12) as well as 4- and 5-year-old human preschoolers (N = 24) with a vertical maze task. To gain a reward placed on the uppermost level of the maze, subjects had to move the reward to the bottom through open gaps situated at each level of the maze. In total, there were ten gaps located over three of the maze’s levels, and free passage through these gaps could be flexibly blocked using multiple traps. Due to the decision tree design of the maze, the subjects had to plan their actions depending on the trap configuration up to two steps ahead to successfully retrieve the reward. We found that (1) our measure of planning was negatively correlated with age in nonhuman apes, (2) younger apes as well as 5-year-old children planned their moves up to two steps ahead whereas 4-year-olds were limited to plan one step ahead, and (3) similar performance but different underlying limitations between apes and children. Namely, while all species of nonhuman apes were limited by a lack of motor control, human children exhibited a shortage in shifting their attention across a sequence of subgoals.     

Analogical transfer in the THOG task

The influences of surface and structural similarity on analogical transfer were examined with 318 undergraduate participants in four experiments using Needham and Amado's (1995) Pythagoras THOG problem as the source problem and Wason's standard abstract THOG task as the target problem. In Experiments 1-3, systematic changes in surface similarity between the source and target problems were introduced by changing the named exemplar, the dimensional values, and the dimensions, respectively, in the target problem. Significant transfer was obtained in all three experiments. In Experiment 4, we explored the basis of this transfer by examining three versions of the Pythagoras THOG problem, factorially combining its facilitating features as source problems. Results indicated that the inclusion of a hypothesis generation request was necessary for significant transfer. The implications of our findings for using transfer versus facilitation as the performance criterion for deductive reasoning are considered.     

Multiple paths to transfer and constraint relaxation in insight problem solving

In two experiments participants received various training methods designed to relax constraints present in the Four-Tree problem (deBono, 1967 deBono, E. 1967. The use of lateral thinking, London: Jonathan Cape.  [Google Scholar]), a difficult insight problem. Geometry misconceptions were corrected via direct instruction. Participants’ difficulty with developing three-dimensional representations was addressed via spontaneous analogical transfer (Experiment 1) or via cued analogical transfer (Experiment 2). We found that, while both training methods were effective, alleviating multiple constraints was more effective than the alleviation of single constraints via training programmes (c.f. Kershaw & Ohlsson, 2004 Kershaw, T. C. and Ohlsson, S. 2004. Multiple causes of difficulty in insight: The case of the nine-dot problem. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning Memory and Cognition, 30: 3–13. doi: 10.1037/0278-7393.30.1.3[Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). Providing single difficulty hints was ineffective in promoting solution. Implications for multiple paths to transfer (Nokes, 2009 Nokes, T. J. 2009. Mechanisms of knowledge transfer. Thinking & Reasoning, 15: 1–36. doi: 10.1080/13546780802490186[Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]; Nokes & Ohlsson, 2005 Nokes, T. J. and Ohlsson, S. 2005. Comparing multiple paths to mastery: What is learned?. Cognitive Science, 29: 769–796. doi: 10.1207/s15516709cog0000_32[Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) and multiple constraints are discussed.     

Deconstructing the tower: Parameters and predictors of problem difficulty on the Tower of London task

The Tower of London (TOL) task has been widely used in both clinical and research realms. In the current study, 104 healthy participants attempted all possible moderate- to high-difficulty TOL problems in order to determine: (1) optimal measures of problem solving performance, (2) problem characteristics, other than the minimum moves necessary to solve the problem, that determine participants’ difficulty in solving problems successfully, quickly, and efficiently, and (3) effects of increased task experience on which problem characteristics determine problem difficulty. A factor analysis of six performance measures found that, regardless of task experience, problem difficulty could be captured well either by a single factor corresponding to general quality of solution or possibly by three subordinate factors corresponding to solution efficiency, solution speed, and initial planning speed. Regression analyses predicting these performance factors revealed that in addition to a problem’s minimum moves three problem parameters were critical in determining the problem difficulty: goal position hierarchy, start position hierarchy, and number of solution paths available. The relative contributions of each of the characteristics strongly depended on which performance factor defined performance. We conclude that TOL problem performance is multifaceted, and that classifying problem difficulty using only the minimum moves necessary to solve the problem is inadequate.     

Counterintuitive and alternative moves choice in the Water Jug task

MOVE problems, like the Tower of London (TOL) or the Water Jug (WJ) task, are planning tasks that appear structurally similar and are assumed to involve similar cognitive processes. Carder et al. [Carder, H.P., Handley, S.J., & Perfect, T.J. ( 2004). Deconstructing the Tower of London: Alternative moves and conflict resolution as predictors of task performance. The Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology 57a, 8, 1459-1483] showed that one predictor of TOL performance was the number of alternative move choices there were at a given point in the solution. In two experiments an individual move experienced on the WJ task was manipulated (perceptually consistent/counterintuitive) along with the number of alternative moves there were to choose between. A verification paradigm was employed in which participants made speeded judgements about the correctness of a move. Results showed performance was consistent with the application of a perceptual strategy accompanied by a process involving the evaluation of non-redundant alternative moves. These are discussed in the context of recent research that has examined the impact of executive dysfunction on Water Jug performance [Colvin, M.K., Dunbar, K., & Grafman, J. (2001). The effects of frontal lobe lesions on goal achievement in the Water Jug task. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 13, 1129-1147].     

Insight problem solving in individuals with high versus low schizotypy

Insight problem solving requires restructuring of a problem space by stepping out of the framework provided by the commonly activated cognitive schemas and acquiring a new perspective on the problem. Schizotypy has been linked with loosened associative and overinclusive thinking that may be advantageous for this process. The present study tested this hypothesis and found that individuals with a high degree of schizotypy show better performance on a set of insight problems relative to individuals with low schizotypy, but not on a set of incremental problems that required focused goal-related thinking. Results support the notion that schizotypy is associated not only with enhanced abilities in creative processes involved in divergent thinking but also in creative operations during analytical problem solving.     

Eye movements reveal solution knowledge prior to insight

In two experiments, participants solved anagram problems while their eye movements were monitored. Each problem consisted of a circular array of five letters: a scrambled four-letter solution word containing three consonants and one vowel, and an additional randomly-placed distractor consonant. Viewing times on the distractor consonant compared to the solution consonants provided an online measure of knowledge of the solution. Viewing times on the distractor consonant and the solution consonants were indistinguishable early in the trial. In contrast, several seconds prior to the response, viewing times on the distractor consonant decreased in a gradual manner compared to viewing times on the solution consonants. Importantly, this pattern was obtained across both trials in which participants reported the subjective experience of insight and trials in which they did not. These findings are consistent with the availability of partial knowledge of the solution prior to such information being accessible to subjective phenomenal awareness.     

Insight versus analysis: Evidence for diverse methods in problem solving

Since the Gestalt psychologists made the distinction approximately 100 years ago, psychologists have differentiated between solving problems through analysis versus insight. The present paper presents evidence to support the idea that, rather than conceptualising insight versus analysis as distinct modes of solving problems, it is more useful to conceive of insight and analysis as two approaches within a set of possible solving methods. In the present research, 60 participants solved insight problems while thinking aloud, which provided evidence concerning the processes underlying problem solution. Comparison with performance of a nonverbalisation control group (n = 35) indicated no negative effects of thinking aloud on insight in problem solving. The results supported the idea that various methods are utilised in solving insight problems. The “classic” impasse–restructuring–insight sequence occurred in only a small minority of solutions. A number of other solution methods were found, ranging from relatively direct applications of knowledge, to various heuristic methods, to restructuring arising from new information gleaned from a failed solution. It is concluded that there is not a sharp distinction between solving a problem through analysis versus insight, and implications of that conclusion are discussed.     

A computational model of frontal lobe dysfunction: working memory and the Tower of Hanoi task

A symbolic computer model, employing the perceptual strategy, is presented for solving Tower of Hanoi problems. The model is calibrated—in terms of the number of problems solved, time taken, and number of moves made—to the performance of 20 normal subjects. It is then "lesioned" by increasing the decay rate of elements in working memory to model the performance of 20 patients with lesions to the prefrontal cortex. The model captures both the main effects of subject groups (patients and normal controls) performance, and the subject groups (patients and normal controls) by problem difficulty interactions. This leads us to support the working memory hypothesis of frontal lobe functions, but for a narrow range of problems.     

Time of day effects on problem solving: When the non-optimal is optimal

In a study examining the effects of time of day on problem solving, participants solved insight and analytic problems at their optimal or non-optimal time of day. Given the presumed differences in the cognitive processes involved in solving these two types of problems, it was expected that the reduced inhibitory control associated with non-optimal times of the day would differentially impact performance on the two types of problems. In accordance with this expectation, results showed consistently greater insight problem solving performance during non-optimal times of day compared to optimal times of day but no consistent time of day effects on analytic problem solving. The findings indicate that tasks involving creativity might benefit from a non-optimal time of day.     

Working memory and literacy as predictors of performance on algebraic word problems

Previous studies on individual differences in mathematical abilities have shown that working memory contributes to early arithmetic performance. In this study, we extended the investigation to algebraic word problem solving. A total of 151 10-year-olds were administered algebraic word problems and measures of working memory, intelligence quotient (IQ), and reading ability. Regression results were consistent with findings from the arithmetic literature showing that a literacy composite measure provided greater contribution than did executive function capacity. However, a series of path analyses showed that the overall contribution of executive function was comparable to that of literacy; the effect of executive function was mediated by that of literacy. Both the phonological loop and the visual spatial sketchpad failed to contribute directly; they contributed only indirectly by way of literacy and performance IQ, respectively.     

Is problem solving dependent on language?

There has been a long-standing debate in the fields of philosophy and cognitive science surrounding the relationship of language to cognition, but the exact nature of this relationship is still unclear (Sokolov, 1968/1972). In the current study, we explored the role of language in one aspect of cognition, namely problem solving, by administering the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) to stroke patients with varying degrees of language impairment (Experiment 1) and to normal participants under conditions of articulatory suppression (Experiment 2). In Experiment 1, there was a significant correlation between performance on the WCST and language measures such as comprehension and naming. Demonstrating the specificity of this result, we also found a significant relationship between language performance and another test of problem solving, the Raven's Colored Progressive Matrices, but no relationship between language and a test of visuospatial functioning. In Experiment 2, normal participants were significantly impaired on the WCST under conditions of articulatory suppression, relative to a baseline condition. Together, these findings suggest that language plays a role in complex problem solving, possibly through covert language processes.     

Covert shifts of attention function as an implicit aid to insight

Previous research shows that directed actions can unconsciously influence higher-order cognitive processing, helping learners to retain knowledge and guiding problem solvers to useful insights (e.g. Cook, S. W., Mitchell, Z., & Goldin-Meadow, S. (2008). Gesturing makes learning last. Cognition, 106, 1047-1058; Thomas, L. E., & Lleras, A. (2007). Moving eyes and moving thought: on the spatial compatibility between eye movements and cognition. Psychonomic Bulletin and Review, 14, 663-668). We examined whether overt physical movement is necessary for these embodied effects on cognition, or whether covert shifts of attention are sufficient to influence cognition. We asked participants to try to solve Duncker’s radiation problem while occasionally directing them, via an unrelated digit-tracking task, to shift their attention (while keeping their eyes fixed) in a pattern related to the problem’s solution, to move their eyes in this pattern, or to keep their eyes and their attention fixed in the center of the display. Although they reported being unaware of any relationship between the digit-tracking task and the radiation problem, participants in both the eye-movement and attention-shift groups were more likely to solve the problem than were participants who maintained fixation. Our results show that by shifting attention in a pattern compatible with a problem’s solution, we can aid participants’ insight even in the absence of overt physical movements.     

Using another's gaze as an explicit aid to insight problem solving

Research has shown that implicitly guiding attention via visual cues or unrelated tasks can increase the likelihood of solving insight problems. We examined whether following another person making specific skin-crossing saccades could induce similar attentional shifts and increase solution rates for Duncker's ((1945) Duncker, K. 1945. On problem solving. Psychological Monographs, 58 (5, Whole No. 270)[Crossref] , [Google Scholar]) radiation problem. We presented 150 participants with one of three 30-s eye movement patterns from another problem solver: (a) focusing solely on the central tumour; (b) naturally making skin-crossing saccades between the outside area and the tumour from multiple angles; or (c) making deliberate skin-crossing saccades between the outside area and the tumour from multiple angles. Following another person making skin-crossing saccades increased the likelihood of solving the radiation problem. Our results demonstrate that another person's eye movements can promote attentional shifts that trigger insight problem solving.     

The neural basis of insight problem solving: an event-related potential study

The electrophysiological correlates of successful insight problem solving (Chinese logogriphs) were studied in 18 healthy subjects using high-density event-related potentials (ERPs). A new experimental paradigm (learning-testing model) was adopted in order to make subjects find a solution on their own initiative rather than receive an answer passively. Results showed that Successful guessed logogriphs elicited a more positive ERP deflection (P200-600) than did Unsuccessful guessed logogriphs in the time window from 200 to 600 ms after onset of the stimuli. Subsequently Successful logogriphs elicited a more negative ERP deflection than did Unsuccessful logogriphs in the time windows of 1500-2000 ms (N1500-2000) and 2000-2500 ms (N2000-2500). Maps of the P200-600 showed strong activity in the midline parieto-occipital scalp regions. Dipole analysis localized the generator of P200-600 in the left superior temporal gyrus and parietotemporo-occipital cortex areas. The N1500-2000 and N2000-2500 had a distinct activation over left frontal scalp regions. Dipole analysis localized the generator of the N1500-2000 in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and the N2000-2500 in the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC). This result indicates that the parietotemporo-occipital cortex areas might be involved in forming rich associations in the early stage of successful logogriph solving. Then, the ACC might play an important role in the breaking mental set and the forming of novel associations. At last, "Aha" feeling might activate the PCC.     

How great apes perform on a modified trap-tube task

To date, neither primates nor birds have shown clear evidence of causal knowledge when attempting to solve the trap tube task. One factor that may have contributed to mask the knowledge that subjects may have about the task is that subjects were only allowed to push the reward away from them, which is a particularly difficult action for primates in certain problem solving situations. We presented five orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus), two chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), two bonobos (Pan paniscus), and one gorilla (Gorilla gorilla) with a modified trap tube that allowed subjects to push or rake the reward with the tool. In two additional follow-up tests, we inverted the tube 180° rendering the trap nonfunctional and also presented subjects with the original task in which they were required to push the reward out of the tube. Results showed that all but one of the subjects preferred to rake the reward. Two orangutans and one chimpanzee (all of whom preferred to rake the reward), consistently avoided the trap only when it was functional but failed the original task. These findings suggest that some great apes may have some causal knowledge about the trap-tube task. Their success, however, depended on whether they were allowed to choose certain tool-using actions. Electronic Supplementary Material Supplementary material is available for this article at     

Overcoming fixed mindsets: The role of affect

When there is an established strategy to solve a problem, we often approach the problem with a mindset that makes us blind for more efficient solutions. We examined the role of affect in overcoming such blinding effects of mindsets. As positive affect is known to broaden and negative affect to narrow thought–action repertoires, we speculated that positive affect facilitates and negative affect impedes the overcoming of a current mindset. To induce a mindset, participants initially solved 60 similar problems which were only solvable using the same complex strategy. After a short break in which positive or negative affect was induced, participants continued to work on the problems. Critically, there now was an additional simple way to solve the problems. Participants experiencing positive affect were more likely to detect the simple solution than participants experiencing negative affect. These findings reveal that affect modulates how much we are constrained by current mindsets.     

从困境到超越：顿悟的脑机制研究

在1913~1920年间,德国心理学家苛勒进行了有关顿悟的经典实验。苛勒发现挑战了当时占主导地位的“尝试-错误”学习理论,表明问题解决行为可以以一种突发的形式产生,并在一瞬间获得对于问题情境的全新的思考和把握。但是直到最近心理学家才开始逐渐认识顿悟的大脑机制。该文介绍了近期围绕顿悟过程开展的脑成像研究,介绍了有关的研究方法,并讨论了参与顿悟过程的各个关键脑区的功能     

Young children’s analogical problem solving: Gaining insights from video displays

This study examined how toddlers gain insights from source video displays and use the insights to solve analogous problems. The sample of 2- and 2.5-year-olds viewed a source video illustrating a problem-solving strategy and then attempted to solve analogous problems. Older, but not younger, toddlers extracted the problem-solving strategy depicted in the video and spontaneously transferred the strategy to solve isomorphic problems. Transfer by analogy from the video was evident only when the video illustrated the complete problem goal structure, including the character’s intention and the action needed to achieve a goal. The same action isolated from the problem-solving context did not serve as an effective source analogue. These results illuminate the development of early representation and processes involved in analogical problem solving. Theoretical and educational implications are discussed.