Quiz 8: Problem Solving

A ____________________ string led to a restructured representation in the two-string problem. swinging unknotted knotted stationary

swinging

____________________ identified people's tendency to focus on a specific characteristic of a problem that keeps them from arriving at a solution as a major obstacle to successful problem solving. Psychophysicists Information processing psychologists Gestalt psychologists The analogical problem solving approach

Gestalt psychologists

Which of the following provides the best example of functional fixedness? Using a tire as a swing seat and as a football practice target Using a juice glass as a container for orange juice Using a pair of pliers as a paperweight Using a wine bottle as a vase

Using a juice glass as a container for orange juice

The analogical paradox refers to problem-solving differences between well- and ill-defined problems. experimental groups and control groups. experts and novices. laboratory and real-world settings.

laboratory and real world settings

Finke's creating an object studies show that people were more likely to come up with creative uses for preinventive objects if they had received training in creative thinking. were told they were expected to be creative. had been preselected as "creative" individuals. made the objects themselves.

made the objects themselves

Actions that take the problem from one state to another are known as operators. mental sets. intermediate states. subgoals.

operators

The elements of the problem space include all of the following EXCEPT goal state. initial state. intermediate states. operators.

operators

In analogical problem solving, the ____________________ problem is the problem that an individual is trying to solve, and the ____________________ problem, which has been solved in the past, is used as a guide for reaching that solution.

target;source

Illustrative of functional fixedness, people are more likely to solve the candle problem if fewer tacks are provided. pliers are also presented. the box is empty. the candle is already lit.

the box is empty

The best description of the purpose of think-aloud protocols is that they are used to determine which people can be considered more creative in ability to solve problems. how to develop computer programs that best mimic human problem solving. how a person's expertise increases his or her likelihood of solving a problem, relative to a beginner. what information a person is attending to while solving a problem.

what information a person is attending to while solving a problem.

The typical purpose of subgoals is to move the solver directly from the initial state to the goal state. avoid the need to perform means-end analysis. bring the problem solver closer and closer to the goal state. solve insight problems.

bring the problem solver closer and closer to the goal state.

In the movie Apollo 13, astronauts aboard a damaged spacecraft have to build a carbon dioxide filter out of random items that are aboard the ship with them. If they do not, they will all die rapidly of carbon dioxide poisoning. The fact that they are able to do so with the help of experts on Earth is similar to the ____________________ approach developed by Ronald Finke. creative cognition divergent thinking the means-end analysis convergent thinking

divergent thinking

Experts categorize problems based on general principles that problems share. surface and deep structures. event-specific knowledge. how similar the objects in the problem are.

general principles that problems share

A researcher records a brainstorming session in an industrial research and development department rather than in an artificial laboratory setting. Later, she analyzes the recorded discussions, identifying certain problem-solving techniques. This research is an example of ____________________ research. situationally-produced mental set environmental functional fixedness think-aloud protocol in vivo problem-solving

in vivo problem-solving

In the Tower of Hanoi problem, the ____________________ state involves having three discs stacked on the left peg, with the middle and right pegs empty. intermediate transitory goal initial

initial

Which of the following is not true about divergent thinking? It is open-ended. It has a single correct answer. It has a large number of potential solutions. It is the cornerstone of creativity.

it has a single correct answer

The solution to the candle problem involves realizing that the candle can be oriented horizontally or diagonally. candle can be cut in half. match box can be used as a container for tacks. match box can be used as a shelf.

match box can be used as a shelf

Janet is alone in a room that contains a chair and a shelf with a book resting on top. She attempts to retrieve the book, but the shelf is a foot above her reach. How will Janet retrieve the book? Psychologists would NOT classify this scenario as a problem because the solution is immediately obvious. the initial state is not clearly defined. the goal state is not clearly defined. there is an obstacle between the present state and the goal state.

the solution is immediately obvious.

Kaplan and Simon's experiment presented different versions of the mutilated checkerboard problem. The main purpose of their experiment was to demonstrate that a person's mental set can hinder finding a solution to a problem. people often have to backtrack within the problem space to arrive at an answer to a problem. people arrive at the solution to an insight problem suddenly, but proceed more methodically towards the solution of a non-insight problem. the way the problem is represented can influence the ease of problem solving.

the way the problem is represented can influence the ease of problem solving.

The text's discussion of the research on in vivo problem solving highlighted that ____________________ play(s) an important role in solving scientific problems. insight subgoals flexibility analogies

analogies