Is self-generated thought a means of social problem solving?

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Psychology
• Social Cognition

Background:

• Social problem solving is crucial for daily functioning.
• Self-generated thought (SGT) involves cognition independent of immediate stimuli.
• The relationship between SGT and social problem solving requires further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the association between self-generated thought (SGT) and social problem solving abilities.
• To determine if the quantity or content of SGT influences social problem solving outcomes.
• To explore the role of cognitive control, measured by working memory and reaction time tasks, in social problem solving.

Main Methods:

• Participants completed the Means-End Problem Solving task (MEPS) to assess social problem solving efficiency and relevant means generation.
• Self-generated thought (SGT) was measured using thought sampling during choice reaction time (CRT) and working memory (WM) tasks.
• Performance on CRT and WM tasks served as indicators of cognitive control.

Main Results:

• Higher overall SGT correlated with lower MEPS efficiency but more relevant means generated.
• The specific content of SGT did not predict individual differences in social problem solving.
• Working memory performance, but not CRT performance, was positively associated with better MEPS performance.

Conclusions:

• The capacity for self-generated thought (SGT) is implicated in generating solutions to social problems.
• Effective social problem solving may depend on balancing internal thought generation with the ability to focus on external task demands.
• Cognitive control, particularly working memory capacity, supports efficient social problem solving.