Cognitive Psychology - Problem-Solving Vocabulary

Flashcards covering key vocabulary and concepts from the Problem-Solving lecture notes.

Start State

Your current situation

Goal State

The desired situation

Well-defined Problems

Problems where all aspects are well-defined, including the initial state, goal state, and possible moves.

Ill-defined Problems

Problems where the start state, end state, or possible strategies may be unknown.

Knowledge Rich Problems

Problems that require specific knowledge.

Knowledge Lean Problems

Problems that do not require specific knowledge, such as puzzles.

Trial and Error Learning

Unsystematic behavior that requires no knowledge, is slow, doesn’t work for all problems, and is risky.

Gestalt Approach

Problem-solving that involves insight or an AHA moment.

Problem Restructuring

Problem is solved after an incubation period

Functional Fixedness

When we only see an object as functioning in one particular way

Neuroscience and Insight

Activation in Right anterior superior temporal gyrus

Representational Change Theory

Construct a problem representation, retrieve operators from memory, impasses occur when the problem representation does not cue the right operators impasses are broken by restructuring the problem representation.

Problem Space

All possible states of a problem

Initial State

Starting position

Goal State

Final position

Operators

Allowed moves or actions

Hill-Climbing

Choose a move that brings you closer to the goal

Means-end Analysis

Create a sub-goal and choose a move that will bring you to the sub-goal.

Analogical Problem-Solving

Learning from past problems.

Expertise

Focus on problems that depend on extensive knowledge and learning; many years of practice is required.

Avoid loops

Prefer new solutions, e.g., if no suitable train, try the bus