Mental visualization before and after problem presentation: a comparison.
Three experiments were carried out to study the effects on problem solving of visualization when subjects (secondary-school students and undergraduates) were instructed to generate mental images before the problem was presented and when they received such a hint after being given the problem. In each experiment an arithmetic, a geometric, and a practical problem were presented in three different conditions, a control condition, an "imagery-before" condition, and an "imagery-after" condition. Analysis showed that, in general, the "imagery-after" task helps subjects to overcome the misleading or fixating tendencies which interfere with problem solution; in contrast, the "imagery-before" task may enhance such tendencies.
Antonietti
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A
Department of Psychology, Catholic University of Milan, Italy.
Cerana
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P
Scafidi
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L
D000328:Adult; D001288:Attention; D003210:Concept Formation; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007092:Imagination; D008297:Male; D008433:Mathematics; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual; D011340:Problem Solving