Mental Models and Creative Problem-Solving: The Relationship of Objective and Subjective Model Attributes

Knowledge, or expertise, has been held to contribute to creative problem-solving. In this effort, the relationship of one form of knowledge, mental models, to creative problem-solving was assessed. Undergraduates were asked to solve either a marketing or an education problem calling for creative tho...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inCreativity research journal Vol. 24; no. 4; pp. 311 - 330
Main Authors Mumford, Michael D., Hester, Kimberly S., Robledo, Issac C., Peterson, David R., Day, Eric A., Hougen, Dean F., Barrett, Jamie D.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Philadelphia Taylor & Francis Group 01.10.2012
Routledge
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Subjects
Cognition & reasoning
Cognitive Structures
College students
Correlation
Creative Thinking
Creativity
Knowledge
Multiple Regression Analysis
Need for Cognition Scale
Oklahoma
Problem Solving
Psychological Characteristics
Studies
Undergraduate Students
United States (Southwest)
Vandenberg Mental Rotations Test
Oklahoma
Online AccessGet full text

Cover

More Information
Summary:Knowledge, or expertise, has been held to contribute to creative problem-solving. In this effort, the relationship of one form of knowledge, mental models, to creative problem-solving was assessed. Undergraduates were asked to solve either a marketing or an education problem calling for creative thought. Prior to generating solutions to these problems, the mental models used by undergraduates to understand problems in these domains were assessed in terms of their objective and subjective features. It was found that both objective and subjective features of peoples mental models were related to the quality, originality, and elegance of problem solutions. The implications of these findings for understanding the role of mental models in creative problem-solving are discussed.
ISSN:1040-0419
1532-6934
DOI:10.1080/10400419.2012.730008