Studies of human problem solving have traditionally used deterministic tasks that require the execution of a systematic series of steps to reach a rational and optimal solution. Most real-world problems, however, are characterized by uncertainty, the need to consider an enormous number of variables and possible courses of action at each stage in…

A study of the responses made to problems selected from Raven's Progressive Matrices showed differences in the kinds of errors typically made by eighteen-year-old students. Nine problems were used and the 68 subjects were told to draw their answers on the answer sheets. There were two trials per puzzle. A classification system, devised for errors,…

Undergraduates were given complex figural analogies items, and eye movements were observed under three types of feedback: (1) elaborate feedback; (2) subjects verbalized their thinking and application of rules; and (3) no feedback. Both feedback conditions enhanced the rule-governed information processing during inductive reasoning. (Author/GDC)

The cognitive processes in a widely used, non-verbal test of analytic intelligence--the Raven Progressive Matrices Test (J. C. Raven, 1962)--were analyzed. The analysis determined which processes distinguished between higher-scoring and lower-scoring subjects and which processes were common to all subjects and all items on the test. The analysis…

A task was developed to differentiate the reasoning of elementary school students in fifth, sixth, and seventh grades. Subjects completed 16 matrices containing two, three, or four dimensions and varying in the embeddedness of the dimensions. They also solved a formal operational task assessing ability to isolate, exclude, and include variables.…

Investigated were the relation between functional M-capacity and student performance in solving chemistry problems of increasing M-demand. Student performance decreased as the M-demand of the problems increased. (Author/YP)

The differential effects of two different types of problem-solving training on the problem-solving abilities of gifted fourth graders were studied. Two successive classes of gifted fourth graders from Weslaco Independent School District (Texas) were pretested with the Coloured Progressive Matrices (CPM) and Thinking Creatively With Pictures…

Groups of retarded and nonretarded children were investigated as they learned three rules underlying problems adapted from the Raven Progressive Matrices Test: rotation, imposition, and subtraction. Results were seen as consistent with theories that emphasize transfer flexibility as one potential source of individual and comparative differences in…

Describes a study conducted in a Hong Kong primary school that compared the effects of learning LOGO programing with a process-oriented approach and a content-oriented approach to problem-solving skills. Transfer of training to nonprograming problem solving is discussed, and instruments used to assess students are explained. (33 references) (LRW)

Evidence for suggested basic differences in the abstract reasoning capacity of Negro and Caucasian children includes consistent findings of significantly poorer performance by Negroes on Raven's Progressive Matrices (PM). This study investigated the PM performance of Negro children taught algebra via a discovery method of instruction. It was…

The enhanced metalinguistic abilities demonstrated by additive-bilingual children, including superior control of cognitive processing, may promote the development of symbolic reasoning. Children educated in additive-bilingual (immersion) settings may maintain normal native-language development, while acquiring a second language. This study…

Discussed is an instructional approach, "concept-distillation," which involves experiences, games, and puzzles that have the "distilled essence" of the basic concepts of the physical sciences. This approach is designed to impart a vivid and dramatic meaning and structure of the sciences for transfer in scientific thinking. The…

Tests of spatial ability were analyzed for their analog (visuospatial) and nonanalog (verbal reasoning) components, using factor analyses of items and test scores. The self-selected sample consisted of over 2000 clients (average age about 26 or 27) employing the Johnson O'Connor Research Foundation's aptitude evaluation services in 12 metropolitan…