Branchini Erika, Bianchi Ivana, Burro Roberto, Capitani Elena, Savardi Ugo
Department of Human Sciences, University of Verona Verona, Italy.
Department of Humanities (Section Philosophy and Human Sciences), University of Macerata Macerata, Italy.
Front Psychol. 2016 Dec 26;7:1962. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01962. eCollection 2016.
This paper aims to test whether the use of contraries can facilitate spatial problem solving. Specifically, we examined whether a training session which included explicit guidance on thinking in contraries would improve problem solving abilities. In our study, the participants in the experimental condition were exposed to a brief training session before being presented with seven visuo-spatial problems to solve. During training it was suggested that it would help them to find the solution to the problems if they systematically transformed the spatial features of each problem into their contraries. Their performance was compared to that of a control group (who had no training). Two participation conditions were considered: small groups and individuals. Higher success rates were found in the groups exposed to training as compared to the individuals (in both the training and no training conditions), even though the time required to find a solution was longer. In general, participants made more attempts (i.e., drawings) when participating in groups than individually. The number of drawings done while the participants were trying to solve the problems did not increase after training. In order to explore if the quality (if not the number) of drawings was modified, we sampled one problem out of the seven we had used in the experiment (the "pigs in a pen" problem) and examined the drawings in detail. Differences between the training and no training conditions emerged in terms of properties focused on and transformed in the drawings. Based on these results, in the final discussion possible explanations are suggested as to why training had positive effects specifically in the group condition.
本文旨在测试运用相反概念是否有助于解决空间问题。具体而言，我们研究了一场包含关于相反概念思考的明确指导的培训课程是否会提高解决问题的能力。在我们的研究中，处于实验条件的参与者在面对七个视觉空间问题以求解之前，先接受了一场简短的培训课程。在培训过程中，研究人员建议，如果他们将每个问题的空间特征系统地转换为其相反特征，这将有助于他们找到问题的解决方案。他们的表现与对照组（未接受培训）的表现进行了比较。考虑了两种参与条件：小组和个人。与个人相比（在培训和未培训条件下皆是如此），接受培训的小组的成功率更高，尽管找到解决方案所需的时间更长。总体而言，参与者以小组形式参与时比单独参与时进行了更多尝试（即绘图）。参与者在尝试解决问题时所绘制的图的数量在培训后并未增加。为了探究绘图的质量（而非数量）是否有所改变，我们从实验中使用的七个问题中抽取了一个问题（“围栏里的猪”问题），并详细检查了绘图。在绘图中关注和转换的属性方面，培训和未培训条件之间出现了差异。基于这些结果，在最后的讨论中，针对为何培训在小组条件下具有积极效果提出了可能的解释。
