The Development of Flexible Problem Solving: An Integrative Approach

Author:

Bobrowicz Katarzyna1ORCID,Thibaut Jean-Pierre2ORCID

Affiliation:

1. Department of Behavioural and Cognitive Sciences, University of Luxembourg, 4366 Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg

2. LEAD—Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique UMR-5022, University of Burgundy, 21000 Dijon, France

Abstract

Flexible problem solving, the ability to deal with currently goal-irrelevant information that may have been goal-relevant in previous, similar situations, plays a prominent role in cognitive development and has been repeatedly investigated in developmental research. However, this research, spanning from infancy to the school years, lacks a unifying framework, obscuring the developmental timing of flexible problem solving. Therefore, in this review paper, previous findings are gathered, organized, and integrated under a common framework to unveil how and when flexible problem solving develops. It is showed that the development of flexible problem solving coincides with increases in executive functions, that is, inhibition, working memory and task switching. The analysis of previous findings shows that dealing with goal-irrelevant, non-salient information received far more attention than generalizing in the presence of goal-irrelevant, salient information. The developmental timing of the latter can only be inferred from few transfer studies, as well as executive functions, planning and theory of mind research, to highlight gaps in knowledge and sketch out future research directions. Understanding how transfer in the presence of seemingly relevant but truly irrelevant information develops has implications for well-balanced participation in information societies, early and lifespan education, and investigating the evolutionary trajectory of flexible problem solving.

Funder

Stiftelsen Professor Herman Siegvalds och Fru Hilma Siegvalds fond för pedagogisk och psykologisk forskning

Publisher

MDPI AG

Subject

Cognitive Neuroscience,Developmental and Educational Psychology,Education,Experimental and Cognitive Psychology

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