Although teachers may sequence instructions carefully, they are unable to respond to the complex unique experience of each individual learner. Divergent production should be an instructional choice that enables individuals to learn through their own recall and idea construction. Learning is problem solving; when individuals do not know how to deal with situations, opportunities for learning are presented. Individuals solve problems through idea production dependent on cognition, memory, evaluation, and personal characteristics. Divergent production stimulates an internal locus of control, self-evaluation, and a creative transfer of learning. If the self-assurance and initiative wrought by divergent thinking were developed in the early years of life, school anxiety and learned helplessness might diminish. Individuals should understand their thinking habits and use them most effectively. Studies of intellectual operations, tasks, and metacognitions may enhance the thought and learning processes of the gifted, mentally retarded, and emotionally disturbed. Divergent production helps all individuals to learn when they have not been adequately instructed and to solve problems when they do not know what to do. These abilities contribute to the unique development of each individual. (NRB)