Learning and Transfer in Problem Solving Progressions

Do individuals learn more effectively when given progressive or variable problem-solving experience, relative to consistent problem-solving experience? We investigated this question using a Rubik’s Cube paradigm. Participants were randomly assigned to a progression-order condition, where they practi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of intelligence 2022-10, Vol.10 (4), p.85
Main Authors: Daniels, Jonathan S., Moreau, David, Macnamara, Brooke N.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Cognition & reasoning
Hypotheses
Learning
near-transfer
Pattern recognition
Problem solving
Rubik’s Cube
spatial reasoning
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Summary:Do individuals learn more effectively when given progressive or variable problem-solving experience, relative to consistent problem-solving experience? We investigated this question using a Rubik’s Cube paradigm. Participants were randomly assigned to a progression-order condition, where they practiced solving three progressively more difficult Rubik’s Cubes (i.e., 2 × 2 × 2 to 3 × 3 × 3 to 4 × 4 × 4), a variable-order condition, where they practiced solving three Rubik’s Cubes of varying difficulty (e.g., 3 × 3 × 3 to 2 × 2 × 2 to 4 × 4 × 4), or a consistent-order condition, where they consistently practiced on three 5 × 5 × 5 Rubik’s Cubes. All the participants then attempted a 5 × 5 × 5 Rubik’s Cube test. We tested whether variable training is as effective as progressive training for near transfer of spatial skills and whether progressive training is superior to consistent training. We found no significant differences in performance across conditions. Participants’ fluid reasoning predicted 5 × 5 × 5 Rubik’s Cube test performance regardless of training condition.
ISSN:2079-3200
2079-3200
DOI:10.3390/jintelligence10040085