Means-end analysis Reducing differences between current state and goal state Stop when difference is 0 (no difference) Subgoals Intermediate goals – not your final goal-state Means-end analysis is also considered a way to break up a problem into pieces (subgoals)

Mate example Goal-state = ideal mate Subgoal = utilize a dating service Establish a further subgoal Locate dating services Then, next subgoal = sign up or register

analogy Borrowing a solution already used to solve a similar problem Example problem Patient has a tumor in location that makes it inoperable One possibility is to use a high-powered beam to destroy the tumor from the outside Problem: beam will also damage surrounding healthy tissue

Similar problem Evil king lives in a castle with his army Good king wants to destroy the evil king Good king amasses a huge army to defeat the evil king Problem: only narrow roads bordered by natural (immovable) obstacles lead to evil king’s castle; no single road can hold the entire good king’s army

Solution to castle problem Good king divides the army into smaller divisions Each division goes down a separate road at the same time All divisions meet at the castle simultaneously to overtake the evil king and his army

Solution to tumor problem Divide beam into weaker beams Send all weak beams into body simultaneously but from different angles Combined strength of beams at tumor site will destory tumor

Problems analogous to finding ideal mate Maybe finding perfect job Networking, Internships, Improve job skills Maybe finding a great car Shop around, read reviews, research Maybe choosing a major Career guidance (seek guidance), model it after someone in career you like, pick a major you love

General problem-solving strategies i.e., heuristics (backward search, trial-and-error, means-end analysis, analogy) New example problem ANAGRAM T E S C E L  SELECT Algorithm : list every possible combination of letters Takes too long to use algorithm & hard 2 track

Another anagram Another example Z I M O U G D E N  DOMINGUEZ To solve, we use heuristics (strategies) E.g., word doesn’t start with a Z

Problem-solving phenomena Insight Sudden awareness of a solution to a problem Experimental demonstration Give hard problems; allow people to think about them People report how close they are to the answer as they solve the problem (1-10) Some problems people show no knowledge (score =1) until suddenly getting answer

Incubation Incubation Unconscious problem-solving Fresh perspective Stop solving problem for a while; when you begin again, you’ve made extra progress Unconscious problem-solving One theory of incubation  we continue to work on problem unconscioulsy Fresh perspective Other theory; taking a break allows a fresh perspective on the problem

More on incubation Extremely difficult and rare to demonstrate incubation in a laboratory setting

Functional fixedness Stuck when solving a problem because you cannot see a new or alternative way to use an object or tool Refer to page 356 Duncker’s candle problem