What Gestalt psychologists call the reforming/reframing of a problem to help find a solution. This is useful to overcome fixation and generate insight.

Restructuring

The instantaneous realization of the solution to a problem.

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

- Ideation
- Fixation
- Insight
- Mental set
- Newell-Simon approach to problem solving
- Presentation of problems
- Analogical problem solving
- Group brainstorming
- Prediction
-Inflexibility 

Focuses of research on problem solving

Goldstein, E. B. (2014). Cognitive psychology: Connecting mind, research and everyday experience. Nelson Education.


Cognitive psychology: Connecting mind, research and everyday experience

The creative process of generating ideas (basic thoughts) to their development, actualization, and communication that can be conducted by one or many people.

Ideation

Insight

People have a tendency to focus in on a specific part of a problem which can prevent them from solving that problem.

Fixation

A mental set is a cognitive obstacle where an individual persists in using a problem-solving strategy that has been successful in the past, even when it is no longer effective for the current problem. This reliance on familiar methods can prevent the discovery of new, more appropriate solutions.

Mental set

Based in information processing theory of cognitive psychology.

Problem solving can be broken down into different states such as the:
- Initial state
- Goal state
- Intermediate states

The states can change through operators and strategy setting subgoals through means-end analysis.

Newell-Simon approach to problem solving

How a problem is explained affects how easy it is to solve it.

Presentation of problems and ease to solve

Using the solution to a similarly structured problem can help solve a problem at hand.

Analogical problem solving

A solution to the notion that preconceptions can inhibit creativity. Encourages multiple people to freely express ideas helpful in problem solving. Participants should be told to share whatever comes to mind and to not be critical of others ideas.

Group brainstorming

A statement about the future usually based upon prior information, knowledge or experience.

Prediction

Within problem solving, an important category of executive functioning (with a developmental perspective) is inflexibility. Psychopathology patients that exhibit symptoms of inflexibility have trouble performing some or all executive functions. 

Inflexibility

A seasoned chef is famous for a complex sauce made using a traditional whisking technique. The restaurant buys a new high-speed immersion blender designed to create smoother sauces in a fraction of the time. Despite the new tool's potential, the chef continues to apply their old, familiar whisking motions while using the new blender, resulting in a poorly mixed sauce. They fail to adopt a different, simpler approach better suited for the new equipment. Which cognitive obstacle is the chef most clearly demonstrating?

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