| Abstract: | Results from two investigations examine the relationship between problem solving strategies (leaping and flexibility) and measures of insight and scholastic aptitude. In Study 1, university students were asked to use minimal information to solve perceptual and linguistic items on a clue-efficiency task. Results reveal a significant relationship between both leaping and insight scores and flexible-leaping and scores on the quantitative subtest of the SAT. A second study examined the developmental trajectory of flexibility, leaping, and clue-efficiency. Developmental declines, notably between fifth and sixth grades, are reported in the use of flexibility and leaping. These developmental declines do not result from shifts to more sophisticated (e.g., efficient) strategies, as no developmental differences in efficiency were observed. |
