Abstract
A new approach to problem solving was applied to multisolution problems in a memory search task. Subjects memorized a list of eight four-letter foods, and then searched mentally through the list for answers to questions. The times between successive answers (IRTs) were recorded along with the answers themselves. This allowed a comparison of two possible memory search strategies: (1) sampling with replacement, and (2) sampling without replacement. The results were largely in agreement with the sampling-without-replacement strategy. However, a more detailed breakdown of the data revealed that most subjects searched through the list in a rigid serial order. Further, an analysis of questions with identical answers showed that the IRTs were very nearly additive. This led to an additive time component model based on the independent summation of (a) read-in time, (b) memory-search time, (c) decision-making time, and (d)response-output time. This approach appeared generally more satisfactory than previous attempts to account for problem-solving behavior.
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This work was done at the University of Michigan during the senior author’s tenure in U.S. Public Health Service Postdoctoral Fellowship 1 F02 MH-36963-01 from the National Institute of Mental Health, and during the second author’s tenure in U.S. Public Health Service Training Grant GM 01231 08 from the National Institute of Mental Health. The preparation of this paper was supported by U.S. Public Health Service Grant MH 26002 from the National Institute of Mental Health. The authors wish to thank James Greeno and Brown Grier for their advice during the initial stages of work.
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Shanteau, J., McClelland, G.H. Mental search processes in problem solving. Memory & Cognition 3, 627–634 (1975). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03198228
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03198228