The purpose of this study was to identify features of young children's behavior that contribute to effective problem solving. A total of 24 children 4 and 5 years of age, half from low socioeconomic status (SES) families and half from high, were observed while performing perceptual/performance cognitive tasks. Five tasks were presented. All test…

The collaborative consultancy role proposed for the educational technologist requires moving beyond the linear model of the systematic approach. Instructional developers need to operate on the conceptual level, to see themselves as problem solvers within a dynamic system in which there are no straight paths, but instead, many paths and many…

Competitive forensic teams should turn to their students for leadership. Such an approach gives students valuable experience in handling responsibility, while relieving school administrators of some of the tasks involved in debate competition. Since forensic students are intelligent and highly ambitious, they should be leaders of debate programs,…

The concept of pi is one of great importance to all developed civilization and one that can be explored and mastered by elementary students through an inductive and problem-solving approach. Such an approach is outlined and discussed. The approach involves the following biblical quotation: "And he made a moltin sea ten cubits from one brim to…

Rapoport and Chammah's (1965) Prisoner's Dilemma (PD) game research and Vinacke's (1959) parchisi board game research revealed that players used various strategies to reach their desired outcomes. The researchers ascribed the strategy variations to gender differences. A study was conducted which replicated Vinacke's parchisi board game and…

This slide talk offers advice to adults to help children cope with nightmares. Children are encouraged (1) to assume power over the dream by drawing it; (2) separate the frightened part of the self from the problem-solving self; (3) let the picture describe the problem; (4) ask the picture to speak; (5) see how the dreamer's power matches the…

This instructional packet is one of a series of five modules that emphasize a systematic decision-making model for common problematic situations. The steps of the model are identifying the problem, gathering information, developing and assessing alternatives, implementing a solution, and evaluating and modifying the solution. Aimed at adult basic…

This report proposes a modification of Jean Piaget's concept of "creative abstraction," the mechanism of creative thought, which develops both intelligence and creative ideas. By reflecting on one's actions and the coordinations of actions, the individual constructs new relationships, links, rules, or correspondences between and among them.…

This paper examined the processes of problem-solving in a group of child abusing families and in a demographically matched comparison group of nonabusing families. Problem-solving was elicited through an interactional task that required family members to spend 10 minutes deciding upon an area of common disagreement in the family. Responses to the…

This paper examines the category-theoretic formulation of cognitive development introduced by Piaget in the late 1960's and elaborated during the 1970's. The new theory is interpreted as the focal point of Piaget's investigations into topics such as function, correspondences, and commutability. Hypotheses arising from Piaget's new model were…

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of the Future Problem Solving Program on gifted students' ability to solve futuristic problems. Two specific research questions were asked. The first question dealt with the effects of the Future Problem Solving Program on subjects' total score on an ill-structured problem. Question two asked…

This annotated bibliography includes sources of information that are primarily concerned with problem solving, decision making, and processes of social influence in small groups, and secondarily deal with other aspects of communication and interaction in groups, such as conflict management and negotiation. The 57 entries, all dating from 1980…

The interpretation of dental X-rays by novices (students) and experts (dentists practicing more than 3 years) was compared. Eight fifth-year novices and eight experts were presented three types of problem X-ray (easy, difficult, and control). Experts were faster in solving the problems and their diagnoses were more accurate. Analysis of eye…

Factors affecting persons in need of help have been of great concern to social psychologists. To investigate expressed willingness to seek help, evaluations of help-seekers, and the influence of the Protestant ethic on help seeking, college students completed questionnaires containing descriptions of eight situations in which a person was faced…

This review considers the question as to whether there are generic problem-solving skills that cut across fields or whether the skills are so embedded within specific fields that they can be identified only within the contexts of those fields. To answer this question, an attempt was made to define both "problems" and their "solutions." Then the…