Lecture 17 Problem solving Types of problems Well defined problems: o Unambiguous o All information needed to solve the problem is present Applying rules · Ex. a puzzle or making coffee in the morning · III defined problems The goal is ambiguous o Requires additional info o Situational o Ex. my laptop is broken Well defined problems . Defined goal and set task constraint · Rules to follow . Goal directedness: there is a clear path to move from the problem to the solution Ill-defined problems · no clear path . Not many limitations for how to solve the problem · Must create your own path · Social problem solving is a form of ill-defined problem solving o Multiple solution paths o No guaranteed solution · Require more cognitive load o Greater activity in the prefrontal cortex Problem-solving methods Problem space is a representation of a problem that includes: · Initial and goal states (problem and solution) · Intermediate states or subgoals · Operators, the actions taken to change between these states (transformations) · Task constraints Thinking aloud procedures · Concurrent verbalizations: describe what you are doing as you do it · Retrospective verbalizations: describe what you did at an earlier time o Influenced by metacognitive processes and memory A Brute Force approach · Systematic algorithms represent all the possible steps from the problem state to goals, go through all the options via a blind search . Guaranteed to find a solution, but very inefficient (takes a lot of energy and time) · Combinatorial explosion: computing too many alternatives takes up more resources than available Hill climbing strategy · Difference reduction strategy . Select the operation that brings you closer to the goal without examining the whole problem space . This strategy can lead to a false outcome, a 'local maxima' (subgoal) is mistaken as the final goal . Does not always work because sometimes problems require you to move away from the goal in order to solve it
Means-ends strategy . What means do I have to make the current state I am in look more like the goal state I want to be in? · Identifying subproblems to complete the goal . Forward and backward movements and constantly evaluate the difference between current and goal states · More flexible approach than hill climbing · Steps o Set up a goal Look at difference between that goal and current state (no difference=problem solved) o If there are multiple differences, select the most relevant to solve Find the operator that will reduce the differences between current state and subproblem Repeat steps until goal is achieved Analogical problem solving · Making comparisons between two situations, applying the solution from one of the situations to the other . Target: the situation that the person is currently in . Source: the situation that shares similarity with the target . People aren't very good at using analogies unless they are reminded of the source People must look beyond surface details and consider structural details