Does incubation enhance problem solving? A meta-analytic review.

Sio, Ut and Ormerod, Thomas (2009) Does incubation enhance problem solving? A meta-analytic review. Psychological Bulletin, 135 (1). pp. 94-120. ISSN 0033-2909

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Abstract

A meta-analytic review of empirical studies that have investigated incubation effects on problem solving is reported. Although some researchers have reported increased solution rates after an incubation period (i.e., a period of time in which a problem is set aside prior to further attempts to solve), others have failed to find effects. The analysis examined the contributions of moderators such as problem type, presence of solution-relevant or misleading cues, and lengths of preparation and incubation periods to incubation effect sizes. The authors identified a positive incubation effect, with divergent thinking tasks benefiting more than linguistic and visual insight tasks from incubation. Longer preparation periods gave a greater incubation effect, whereas filling an incubation period with high cognitive demand tasks gave a smaller incubation effect. Surprisingly, low cognitive demand tasks yielded a stronger incubation effect than did rest during an incubation period when solving linguistic insight problems. The existence of multiple types of incubation effect provides evidence for differential invocation of knowledge-based vs. strategic solution processes across different classes of problem, and it suggests that the conditions under which incubation can be used as a practical technique for enhancing problem solving must be designed with care. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)

Item Type:
Journal Article
Journal or Publication Title:
Psychological Bulletin
Uncontrolled Keywords:
/dk/atira/pure/core/keywords/psychology
Subjects:
?? psychologyhistory and philosophy of sciencegeneral psychologypsychology(all)bf psychology ??
ID Code:
56211
Deposited By:
Deposited On:
26 Jul 2012 19:47
Refereed?:
Yes
Published?:
Published
Last Modified:
16 Jul 2024 09:06