Metacognition and Problem Solving

The ability to think about our own thinking processes. It involves awareness of our cognitive abilities, monitoring our performance, and regulating our strategies.

A top-down process, meaning higher-level cognitive functions control lower-level ones. It's like a conductor leading an orchestra, dictating the flow and execution of actions.

The ability to identify mistakes and correct them. This is crucial for effective problem-solving. It's like having an internal editor for your thoughts and actions.

A model explaining how we control our behavior. It proposes a 'supervisory attention system' that manages cognitive resources and makes decisions.

The understanding and knowledge of our own thinking processes. It's about knowing how we learn best, what strategies work for us, and when to use them.

The ability to monitor our progress and make adjustments during problem-solving. It helps us stay on track, avoid getting stuck, and adapt to new information.

The practical use of metacognition. It explains how understanding our thinking can improve our learning, decision-making, and problem-solving.

The ability to use metacognitive strategies is essential for effective problem-solving. It allows for flexible thinking, adapting to challenges, and finding creative solutions.

Refers to your awareness of how well or poorly you are understanding or processing information in real time. It involves recognizing when you're struggling or succeeding.

These are the specific actions or plans you create to monitor and regulate your thinking. These strategies help you plan, evaluate, and adjust how you approach tasks.

The ability to improve performance through recognizing and learning from mistakes, reflecting a growth in cognitive skills.

This refers to your ability to recognize when you need to improve your learning process, but it doesn't necessarily mean you feel confident in your abilities.

While it's often assumed that confidence and competence go hand in hand, the reality is that they are not always aligned.

A critical component of metacognition, internal monologue plays a significant role in regulating thoughts, planning actions, and monitoring progress during cognitive tasks.

While crucial for regulating learning, inner speech can be inconsistent across individuals, making it a less reliable indicator of metacognitive control.

A sudden realization or understanding of a solution to a problem, often accompanied by an "Aha!" moment.

Taking a break from a problem to allow subconscious processing to occur, potentially leading to a breakthrough.

The tendency to use a familiar solution or approach to a problem, even if it's not the most effective.

The inability to see beyond the usual function of an object and consider alternative uses for it.

A cognitive process that involves changing the way we represent or understand a problem.

The idea that insight happens when we loosen our mental constraints or assumptions about a problem.

Reinterpreting or looking at a problem from a new perspective to uncover potential solutions.

Expanding on the information or details of a problem to gain a deeper understanding and find new avenues for solutions.

The ability to think about and regulate one's own thinking.

A genetic predisposition to focus on the actions of others, aiding learning through observation.

A neurotransmitter associated with error detection and monitoring. Lower levels in the ACC indicate error recognition.

A neurotransmitter involved in top-down error correction, enabling us to adjust our thinking and actions after recognizing errors.

The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) plays a crucial role in error detection and monitoring. Lower dopamine levels in this region are associated with recognizing and addressing mistakes.

The neuropsychological role of inner speech in metacognition is difficult to isolate, as research mainly focuses on verbal tasks, ignoring nonverbal forms of thought and diverse cognitive styles.

Metacognition might have a genetic component. Evolutionary theory suggests that humans are genetically predisposed to focus on others' actions, leading to vicarious learning.

Metacognition is influenced by cultural differences. Learning styles and attitudes towards thinking vary across cultures.

Acetylcholine (ACh) is a neurotransmitter crucial for maintaining focus and preparing the brain to process information. It plays a significant role in how attentive and alert we are, and how easily our brain responds to stimuli.

Anosognosia describes a condition where individuals are unaware of their own cognitive, motor, or social deficits, even though they experience them. For example, someone with anosognosia might have a stroke affecting their arm, but they don't realize their arm isn't working properly.

Global anosognosia refers to a lack of awareness about all types of deficits, while specific anosognosia involves the unawareness of specific deficits, such as a motor impairment.

Problems that require extensive background knowledge and prior experience for successful solution. For example, solving a complex medical diagnosis might require extensive knowledge of symptoms, diseases, and diagnostic procedures.

Problems that can be solved with minimal prior knowledge or experience. For example, solving a simple arithmetic problem only requires basic mathematical understanding.

A cognitive model that outlines steps involved in problem-solving, including defining the problem, generating solutions, evaluating choices, and implementing the chosen solution.

The problem-solving cycle model is criticized for being too simplified and not accounting for real-world situations. It overlooks the impact of factors like time pressure, environmental context, and the person's emotional state on the problem-solving process.

Successful problem-solving in real-world scenarios often demands flexibility, adaptability, and resourceful decision-making, especially when faced with unexpected challenges or pressure.

A moment during problem-solving where we get stuck because we can't find a solution using our current approach.

The process of altering our mental representation of a problem, shifting our perspective to find a solution.

The right hemisphere of the brain plays a significant role in generating insight, or those 'Aha!' moments.

Techniques like Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) can be used to stimulate specific brain regions and potentially influence cognitive processes related to insight.

Ollinger's Theory emphasizes that problem-solving involves changing the way we perceive or represent the problem, which facilitates a shift in thinking and leads to a breakthrough.