Ill-structured problems in engineering: inferring the organization of complex problem-solving through concurrent think aloud and eye tracking protocols
Kaszowska, Aleksandra.
2019
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Solving ill-defined problems in real world settings is an
inherently complex process that requires thinkers to integrate multiple knowledge
domains and to continuously interact with the environment to maintain the most
up-to-date definition of the problem space. In doing so, thinkers can divide the
problem into a series of smaller, more manageable sub-problems, and address them
in a stepwise ... read morefashion. But what happens when solvers encounter difficulties in
advancing through the steps and reach an impasse? The present work addresses this
question and proposes a methodological approach for studying complex problem
solving in naturalistic settings. We invited 45 engineering and human factors
design students to solve complex design problem: create a tool aiding completion
of a mundane sorting task (organizing a variety of Lego™ blocks according to a
reference image) and recorded their ongoing verbalizations and eye movements as
they advanced through the design process. We then investigated how engineers
engaged with ideas when exploring possible solution paths to a complex,
ill-defined design problem and encountering impasses. The present work introduces
pivot sequences, a novel approach to categorizing verbal events reflecting
three-step iterative sequences where an idea is being challenged and subsequently
reevaluated. We then employ concordant analysis, an approach to combining
concurrently recorded data streams (in this case unconstrained verbalizations and
eye movements), to investigate the cognitive processes underlying design planning
and gather additional insights into the relationship between vision and language
production during problem solving. Exploratory analyses revealed that early
solution planning is a domain-general process that incorporates implicit
strategies in the form of three-step design direction shifts, which in turn allow
designers to reevaluate and update the problem space in searching for a solution.
Those shifts can vary in scope from switching between main ideas (major pivot) or
approaching the same idea from a different perspective (minor pivot); shift scope
is further reflected in the cognitive demand it places on the
solver.
Thesis (Ph.D.)--Tufts University, 2019.
Submitted to the Dept. of Psychology.
Advisor: Holly Taylor.
Committee: Karen Panetta, Thora Tenbrink, and Nathan Ward.
Keyword: Cognitive psychology.read less - ID:
- 7m01c031h
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- TARC Citation Guide EndNote
