As defined in Cognitive Psychology article, “a problem occurs when there is an obstacle between a present state and a goal and it is not immediately obvious how to get around the obstacle” (Duncker, 1945; Lovett. 2002). We looked at how Gestalt psychologists would resolve a problem. They would analyze (1) how people represent a problem in their mind, and (2) how solving a problem involves reorganization or restructuring of this representation (Goldstein, 2011). We will explore how problems arise in everyday life, and how they can be represented and solved. In essence, there are many ways that problems can be represented and multiple ways to achieve results.

Perception is important in organizing the problem into an understandable conception. Many people perceive problems in different ways. In the example from the article, a crossword puzzle, has many ways to perceive it, and restructure it into manageable and solvable portions. In a real-life example, I had to arrange to set up the Christmas decorations this weekend. While this may sound undaunting and simple, as many know, it is almost never the case. In this example, I knew that the solution was to create manageable portions to complete to solve the larger problem. This insight did not come without practice. Being faced with daunting tasks before, this strategy has worked many times and has been proven to be effective.

Moving forward, I identified the problem to be addressed, setting up the Christmas decorations. I perceived the problem and setup a strategy to solve the problem. I wrote down what needed to be done in a checklist. I gathered the decorations and placed them where they would eventually go. I then began to set up and make sure everything worked and looked nice. I checked off each task as it was completed. Once done, the problem of setting up the Christmas decorations had been solved.

We can also address at the same problem, setting up Christmas decorations using a different approach, the Newell and Simon’s Approach. For this approach there are things that can be done and things that cannot. The initial state is an undecorated room, and the goal state is a decorated room. The operators were the sets of tasks which must be completed to bring the room from a state of undecorated to decorated. The various intermediate states are the states which exist between the undecorated and decorated state. Each intermediate state is a product of subgoals. The various subgoals include: setting up the lights, setting up garland on the mantle, hanging up stockings and placing the tree and decorating the tree. No subgoal can be skipped, or else the goal state will not be achieved.

In short, there are multiple avenues which can be used to solve a problem, but the most important step is to first identify the problem and then represent it in an easily understandable way. The way in which the problem is presented will likely influence the way that it is approached and solved. While various methods have different steps, the goal is ultimately the same. I feel that in addressing the problem above, the Newell and Simon’s approach works best. It helped resolve the problem in the most straightforward, efficient and understandable way.

References

Goldstein, E. B. (2011). Cognitive psychology: connecting mind, research, and everyday experience. Cengage Learning.

Life events, good or bad, stay with us long after the event has passed. A smell or an old photo can take us back to that moment in time. Something long forgotten can suddenly seem fresh in our minds.

Retrieval is the process of remembering information that has been encoded then stored in the brain. When retrieval occurs, an outside stimulus provides a cue that information is familiar or has been seen previously. Retrieval cues are words or outside stimuli that can trigger a memory.

Some memories we would prefer to forget but they remain with us, nonetheless. For example, most of us had an unpleasant experience that we associate with a food or beverage. Alcohol, especially, is a common trigger for bad memories. Most of us have a particular alcoholic beverage that we have sworn off after drinking way too much and having the worst hangover of our lives. For me, tequila is that beverage. Just a slight hint of tequila is enough to ignite my gag reflex. The scent takes me back to that Halloween party and hangover that followed. I remember the people, the location, and how badly I felt.

I have questioned why we remember such unpleasant memories. Evolution may play a role in why stressful or dangerous memories remain so vivid even year later. Imprinting dangerous situations in our minds may serve as a warning to avoid them in the future (Heshmat, 2015). While a good portion of the population, especially college-age kids, drink to excess any given weekend, perhaps the memory of the night we “almost died” (at least figuratively) after a night of drinking is our bodies’ way of reminding us to take it easy and slow down.

Memories do not have be monumental events such as getting married or the birth of a child to stay relevant in our minds. The seemingly most insignificant memories can serve as a reminder to keep ourselves safe.

References

Heshmat, S. (2015). Why do we remember certain things, but forget others? Psychology Today, https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/science-choice/201510/why-do-we-remember-certain-things-forget-others

Goldstein, E. B. (2011). Cognitive psychology: connecting mind, research, and everyday experience. Cengage Learning.

Flash floods are a common occurrence in Northeast Pennsylvania during the late summer months. Almost weekly, there are alerts popping up on television screens or cell phones warning of the possibility of sudden flooding. Recently, the warning came across the screen for my county as I was about to leave for the gym. I do not live close to a river or any other body of water and the gym is less than two miles from my home. Although it was getting dark, I was sure I would be able to see any potential flooding and avoid it if necessary. I believed my chances of being affected by a flash flood to be very low.

Initially, my drive was uneventful. I drove the same side roads that I always take. It was raining hard but there was minimal pooling of water. Eventually, I had turn to get onto the only road that leads to the gym. Immediately, I knew I would not be making it to the gym. I saw a large pool of water underneath an overpass that I would need to drive under to get to my destination. I turned into a parking lot to turn around and was now looking at the puddle from a different angle. As I waited to pull out, I watched other cars drive through the huge puddle. I wondered if I was over-reacting and if my perception of the situation was incorrect. Car after car slowed down but most continued through the pool of water. The water covered about half of their tires. I decided that I would not take the chance and drove in the opposite direction.

All roads were then flooding. I could not get back to the back roads I first drove because it would mean driving through huge puddles. It was now dark and with few streetlights it was difficult to tell how deep these puddles were. I eventually decided to turn onto a street that appeared to wet but not flooded. Immediately I knew I had made a mistake. The water covered my tires about a third of the way. It was too late, though, so I had to keep driving. I made it through the puddle and, eventually, home but I could not stop thinking about how my perception of the situation had been so skewed.

Bayesian inference may account for my lack of judgement. Bayesian inference states that prior experiences with sensory data combine in the brain to form a hypothesis about the possible outcome of a situation (Mares, 2021). Flash flooding had never affected me personally. I had driven in rainstorms many times with no incident so the likelihood of flooding affecting my ability to get to the gym safely seemed low.

Bayesian inference affected my decision to drive that night based on my prior experiences up to that point. I now have a new experience from which to make future decisions. This new perspective will affect my future decision making.

References

Mares, L. (2021). Bayesian theories, visual perceptual states, and multiple realizability. Journal of Theoretical and Philosophical Psychology, doi:http://dx.doi.org.ezaccess.libraries.psu.edu/10.1037/teo0000194