PSYC 213 Lecture Notes - Lecture 23: Bluma Zeigarnik, Problem Solving, Functional Fixedness
11 May 2018
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PSYC 213 March 29 Problem Solving and Creativity
Last class – The structure of problems
• Well defined problems
o Problems that have a set goal and and a set solution path
o Many task constraints – things that will constraint how we solve these problems
o Sudoku puzzles
• Ill-defined problems
o Problems that don’t have that have as many as these task constraints
o It may not be clear for these problems what the solution is – there might not be a clear solution
o Fewer task constraints and more cognitive load
o Navigating awkward situations in life
Seeing someone at the end of a long hallway and figuring out when to wave hello
Try to catch open minded problem solving
• Insight
Gestalt views – insight is something that results from reconstructing a problem so you see it from a new
perspective.
• Insight can help us overcome blocks/stops that we have when we try to solve a problem
o Functional fixedness – when you think about an object or some information as 1 thing = common use
o Mental fixedness – Metal sets and negative transfer. When you approach a task, you have a rigid thinking.
Mental set that you transfer to a new situation, even if it’s not the most productive.
• Insight recruits different brain regions than non0insight problem solving – more right hemi involvement.
Ex. Progress monitoring theory – One theory of problem solving suggests that participants keep track of their steps while
solving a problem and only when they can’t solve a problem from this way, are they are open to insight. Only when they
reach criterion failure, they will turn toward insight.
Why some problems linger: Zeigarnik effect
• Sometimes with insight, you get a particular feeling related to it
• Sometimes you may find that if you cant solve the problem, you may ind that it merge into your mind, you keep thinking
about it
• This effects means that an idea or task, problem that’s not solved, unfulfilled tasks linger in mind & memory.
• If you start a task, you’ll have this cognitive mean to try to finish it bc we don’t like this feeling of incompleteness.
• This creates the need to finish a task once it’s started.
• This effect came from a scientific that observed daily life.
• Bluma Zeigarnik (1901-1988) noticed that waiters could remember compex orders w/o writing them down, but forgot
them once the food was delivered.
• She noticed that the servers in restaurant were able to remember orders w/o taking notes. Once the servers delivered
dishes to customers, they would forget what those orders would be. Maybe this happens bc servers have to keep the info
in mind until they deliver the food and when they deliver & finish their task, they can forget this information.
• A situation that’s incomplete will remain active in one’s mind.
Lab study
• Studied this effect in the lab as well. She had a series of participants doing simple tasks like doing puzzles.
• Sometimes the participants were interrupted while doing these tasks and sometimes they weren’t.
• Asked them which puzzles they remembered doing
• People were more likely to remember the puzzles that came with that interruption.
May explain work- related stress (Syrek. Et al 2014)
• The number of unfinished tasks at work relates to stress levels bc you keep thinking about it.
Analogical transfer – using past stories or solutions to solve a current problem.
• Historical example “EUREKA!” – He had this problem and he was trying to figure out if the king’s crown was pure
gold or not. He could not figure out how to measure the density of the crown to know if it’s silver or gold.
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Analogical problem solving
1. Notice a relationship: there’s an analogous relationship between a source problem and target problem – have to see
something common between what you try to solve (target) and something from your past.
2. Map the correspondence between the source and target problem. You ant just notice that 2 things are similar. You
have to find out how are they similar so that you can transfer info.
3. Apply the mapping by generating a parallel solution for the target problem. – figure out how problem solution form
your past can be manipulative to solve current problem.
Lab study - Give people stories that have problems in them and solutions. Then they’ll give people a target problem to
solve.
Radiation problem (target problem)
• A patient has a stomach tumor. It’s impossible to operate the tumor, but unless the tumor is destroyed, the patient will
die. A high intensity ray would destroy the tumor. Unfortunately, at high intensities, healthy tissue that the ray passes
will also be destroyed. At lower intensities, the ray is harmless but will not affect the tumor. How can the patient be
saved? – use many low intensity rays and bombard that tumor from multiple directions.
Fortress story (given before radiation problem)
• A small country was ruled from a string fortress by a dictator. Many roads let to the fortress. A general that wanted to
capture the fortress learned that the dictator had planted mines on each of the roads. The mines were set so a few men
could pass over them safely, but any large force would detonate the mines. The general divided his army into small
groups and dispatched each group to the head of a different road. Each group continued down its road and the entire
army arrived together at the fortress at the same time. The general captured the fortress and overthrew the dictator.
• If people are give this story before the radiation problem, ~ 30 % of people are able to solve the radiation problem bc
they are able to use analogical transfer. Take the solution from this problem and apply it to radiation problem.
There is a similarity between source and target problem, which allow to solve these problems.
Surface similarity
• The surface details of a problem (specific elements) are similar.
• The parts of the problem look the same
• Ex. 2 people with similar haircuts.
Structural similarity – relations (ideas) are similar, but not how they’re presented.
• The causal relations among the main components are shared by both problems.
• They are similar with respect to their ‘deep representations’ – only the underlying relation, solution is structurally
similar.
• The parts of the problem look different
• Ex. 2 people who go to the same barbed shop to get their haircut
Both structure and surface similarity do help in problem analogy solving, but surface similarity seems to benefit more.
High surface similarity
• Similar in surface details to the radiation problem.
Study – people solve radiation problem. Before, some were given the lightbulb problem that shares some of the features
with radiation problem. It has a lot of surface similarity, unlike the forteress problem.
• A very expensive lightbulb was being used in a lab. A research assistant found that the lightbulb was broken. She
noticed the the filament of a lightbulb was in two parts. The surrounding glass was completely sealed. She knew a
single high-energy laser would fix the filament, but would break the glass of the lightbulb. At lower intensities, the
laser would not break the glass but wouldn’t fuse the filament. How can she fix the bulb?
• Solution – Place several lasers in a circle around the lightbulb.
• Similar in how you solve radiation problem.
Study
• Experimental group – learn the solution to lightbulb problem
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Psyc 213 march 29 problem solving and creativity. Last class the structure of problems: well defined problems, problems that have a set goal and and a set solution path, many task constraints things that will constraint how we solve these problems, sudoku puzzles. Ill-defined problems: problems that don"t have that have as many as these task constraints. It may not be clear for these problems what the solution is there might not be a clear solution: fewer task constraints and more cognitive load, navigating awkward situations in life. Seeing someone at the end of a long hallway and figuring out when to wave hello. Gestalt views insight is something that results from reconstructing a problem so you see it from a new perspective. When you approach a task, you have a rigid thinking. Mental set that you transfer to a new situation, even if it"s not the most productive.
