When it comes to solving problems we humans have some ways of thinking that hinder our ability to find new and effective solutions.  One of these ways of thinking is termed “functional fixedness”.  This term refers to our inability to recognize diverse uses for an object and to focus our problem solving efforts on its usual accepted purpose.  This fixation on a specific use of an object closes our mind to the many other possible purposes it could fulfill thus closing the door to the solutions to countless problems.  If we could overcome this fixation we could open the door to an array of creative solutions.  One Psychology PHD believes he has the key to that door.

Tony McCaffrey, a Psychology PHD from the University of Massachusetts, addresses the problem of functional fixedness with his method entitled the Generic Parts Technique.  The purpose of this technique is to help us overcome the obstacles created by functional fixedness and to enable us to open our minds to other uses of objects and their components thus resulting in more efficient, creative problem solving abilities.

McCaffrey’s Generic Parts Technique involves asking two questions:  1) can the object be broken down further and 2) does my description of the part imply a use? (“Stumped by a Problem? This Technique Unsticks You”, 2012).  In asking these questions we can break down the items at hand into their parts and consider them apart from their usual purpose allowing our minds to consider other possible creative uses for them.  With this technique the “function” of the object is no longer “fixed” in our mind allowing for countless possible creative uses.

When reading about functional fixedness and the Generic Parts Technique the old TV show character MacGyver came to mind.  This character could make use of whatever object that happened to be on hand to disarm a bomb, repair a boat or free an innocent prisoner.  In this video clip entitled “My Trusty Paperclip” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=09UlB17cgKw MacGyver uses a paperclip to disarm a bomb at the last second.  If he had been hindered by functional fixedness he would have seen the only use of the paperclip as to bind paper together and the outcome of this episode would have been much different.  In fact, it would have been the final episode because MacGyver would not have survived to make future shows!

In overcoming the obstacles to problem solving created by functional fixedness we open up a world of possibilities to find solutions to myriad problems.  The Generic Parts Technique can help us to break down the object to its parts and free our minds of the fixation on its use allowing for more creative problem solving.  Imagine the possibilities if we were all freed from functional fixedness.  A paperclip would not only be used to bind papers but would be considered as a bomb disarming tool (well, maybe that’s a little farfetched!)

Reference

Stumped by a Problem? This Technique Unsticks You. (2012, March 6). Retrieved April 17, 2015, from http://www.psychologicalscience.org/index.php/news/releases/stumped-by-a-problem-this-technique-unsticks-you.html

As a parent of a child with ADHD I’m always looking for ways to help my 11 year old daughter overcome the obstacles she faces as a result of this disorder.  Disorganization, forgetfulness and inattentiveness are just a few of these obstacles that she deals with on a daily basis.  Working memory is associated with the management of information, not just its’ storage therefore this aspect of memory is essential to organization and attention.   Learning about the functions of working memory in this course sparked my interest in finding out if there is a link between working memory and ADHD symptoms.  In researching this, not only did I find that there is a link between the disorganization and inattention of ADHD to working memory, but also that there are working memory training programs available that have been shown to improve working memory and to help decrease the related symptoms of ADHD in many people.

The central executive is the control center of the working memory.  It is described by Baddeley as an attention controller (Goldstein, 2011).  It is also responsible for focusing attention on important stimuli and the filtering out of immaterial stimuli (Goldstein, 2011).  Filtering out of immaterial stimuli is a constant struggle for those with ADHD.  I see this struggle in my daughter many times in the course of one day.  For example, if she is working on a math problem for homework and a bird chirps outside the window her attention is immediately diverted from the math problem to the source of the chirp throwing her off task and derailing her train of thought.  This inability to focus attention makes completing a homework assignment not only a long drawn out task but also a source of frustration for her.  Completion of homework is only one example of how the central executive in her working memory is failing to focus her attention on important stimuli and not filtering out unimportant stimuli.

In the article, “Working Memory and ADHD” “working memory is described as being a mental workspace.  The phonological loop is the component of working memory that holds verbal and auditory information and the visuospatial sketch pad is the component that holds visual and spatial information (Goldstein, 2011).  Deficiency in working memory in those with ADHD also negatively affects organization and remembering and understanding of things like class assignments.  These are things I also see with my daughter on a daily basis.  The concept of organization is something that is completely foreign to her (not that my organization skills are much better).  If the things she needs or uses are not right in front of her she seems to forget their very existence and she is also unable to sort out things that are irrelevant.  Her pencil case filled with broken pencils and eraser bits along with her frequent searches for pencils is a good example of her inability to organize.  She has a pocket organizer that she is to write her assignments in when they are given that comes home blank every day.  When asked why she failed to write her assignments down she always replies that she forgot to do so and I know this is not just an excuse, but she truly forgets the assignment in the few seconds from the time her teacher states the assignment to the time it takes to write it down.  This is an example of the failure of her working memory to keep this information from decaying.  We are thankful for the teacher’s homework posting on the schools webpage!

The piece entitled “Your ADHD Brain – Only Stronger” describes working memory training as an effective strategy to improve the function of working memory and in turn improve the symptoms of ADHD.  The author of this article is the parent of a 15 year old boy with ADHD who tried the program despite its somewhat high cost of $1000.00 for the 5 week course.  She did note some minor improvements in her sons symptoms over a short period of time though she wasn’t sure if these improvements were related to the working memory training or to other factors.  The author was hopeful for continued symptom improvement over time.  Since working memory controls the manipulation of the information that we take in it follows that many of the symptoms that we see in those with ADHD result from a deficiency in working memory.  If effective, programs that train the working memory to function better could be one solution to helping these individuals to better perform tasks like organization and directing attention.  I plan to further research working memory training and perhaps have my daughter try the program.

References

Goldstein, E. (2011). Cognitive psychology: Connecting mind, research, and everyday experience (3rd ed.). Australia: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.

Working Memory and ADHD. (2013, June 14). Retrieved March 5, 2015, from http://engageadhd.org/2013/06/14/working-memory-and-adhd/

Your ADHD Brain — Only Stronger. (n.d.). Retrieved March 5, 2015, from http://www.additudemag.com/adhd/article/9132.html

Gestalt psychologists are concerned with how the human mind perceives objects and through their research the Gestalt Laws of Organization were formed. The 6 Gestalt laws of organization are proximity, similarity, good continuation, connectedness, common fate and pragnanz. These principles are used in advertising and marketing with the intent of influencing the potential buyer by way of their perception. The video linked here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0zktpHirGA provides great examples of the use of Gestalt laws in advertising and is also very pleasing to the eye. In reading about this topic I was amazed by how often evidence of the use of these laws is apparent in our everyday lives. I’d like to examine two of these laws, the law of proximity and the law of similarity and how they are used in advertising and marketing.

I’ll begin with the law of proximity which states that our minds will group things together if they are near one another. An example of how this law is used in advertising is when a product is presented by or next to a celebrity or famous figure. In viewing this, we will perceive the product and the celebrity as being grouped together influencing us to purchase the product. When I was in junior high school (many, many years ago) Brooke Shields was the model in the ads for Calvin Klein jeans. We all wanted to wear Calvin Klein’s because we were grouping together the famous Brooke Shields and that brand of jeans. It was very effective advertising in the 1980’s!

The law of proximity is also used in marketing in grocery and retail stores. Marketing experts know that when items for sale are near one another our minds will perceive them as being a group. For example, have you ever noticed a rack of Hollandaise Sauce mixes hanging next to the asparagus in the produce department of your grocery store? This is the use of proximity in marketing as when we set out to buy asparagus and see the Hollandaise our minds link them together and we are encouraged to buy both. The law of proximity is not the only Gestalt law employed by sales and marketing professionals.

The Gestalt law of similarity is also used in advertising. This law states that our minds will group things together that are similar in appearance. An illustration of when this law can be seen in advertising that comes to my mind is an Avon sales catalog. When looking through the catalog the items, the lipsticks or nail polishes for example, are of similar shape and size and are displayed on the same page which leads our mind to perceive that they are a group and attempts to influences us to purchase them all rather than just one. This method must be successful to some extent as Avon has been around for a long, long time!

The use of Gestalt principle that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts is evident in so much of the advertising and marketing of consumer products that surrounds us on a daily basis. Unless we are made aware of it these concepts often go unnoticed by most of us. The next time you see an ad for blue jeans, look at an Avon catalog or walk through the produce department of your local grocery store keep in mind the research and effort that is put in to your perception of the products offered for sale. I’m sure you will recognize evidence of the use of the Gestalt laws of organization everywhere.

References

Goldstein, E. (2011). Cognitive psychology: Connecting mind, research, and everyday experience (3rd ed.). Australia: Wadsworth Cengage Learning

Gestalt principles of form perception. (n.d.). Retrieved January 30, 2015, from https://www.interaction-design.org/encyclopedia/gestalt_principles_of_form_perception.html

Effective Use of Gestalt Principles. (n.d.). Retrieved January 30, 2015, from http://blog.lib.umn.edu/clar0841/psychblog/2011/10/effective-use-of-gestalt-principles.html