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Rule-governed performance and sensitivity to contingencies: what's new?
1Department of Psychology, Western Washington University, Bellingham 98225-9089.
The Journal of General Psychology
|October 1, 1994
Summary
In a problem-solving study, participants given specific instructions used complex solutions even when simpler ones were available. This highlights how perceived demands can hinder efficient strategy selection in human operant performance.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Behavioral Science
Background:
- Human operant performance is often studied as instrumental problem-solving behavior.
- The Einstellung Effect describes how prior experience can hinder the discovery of simpler solutions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how instructions influence the selection of problem-solving strategies in human operant performance.
- To explore the relationship between sensitivity to contingencies and the Einstellung Effect.
Main Methods:
- Subjects completed a series of six water jug problems.
- Three problems required an elaborate formula, and three allowed simpler solutions.
- Experimental subjects were instructed that all problems used the same elaborate formula.
Main Results:
- Experimental subjects solved problems quickly but did not adopt more efficient solutions.
- Instructions led to increased compliance with perceived demand characteristics.
- Participants expected fewer problems to have alternative solutions.
Conclusions:
- Perceived demand characteristics can lead to the continued use of less efficient strategies.
- Sensitivity to contingencies and the Einstellung Effect may be homologous phenomena.
- Common behavioral processes may underlie both phenomena.