Process analysis of the solution strategies used for problems contained in the Minnesota Paper Board Form Board test

This thesis reviews progress toward an understanding of the processes involved in the solution of spatial problems. Previous work employing factor analysis and information processing analysis is reviewed and the emphasis on variations in speed and accuracy as the major contributers to individual differences is noted. It is argued that the strategy used by individuals is a preferable explanatory concept for identifying the cognitive substratum necessary for problem solving. Using the protocols obtained from subjects solving The Minnesota Paper Form Board (Revised), a test commonly regarded as measuring skill in spatial visualization, a number of different strategies are isolated. Assumptions as to the task variants which undergird these strategies are made and tested experimentally. The results suggest that task variants such as the size of the stimulus and the shape of the pieces interact with subject variables to produce the operating strategy. Skill in problem solving is revealed in the ability to structure the array, to hold a structured image and to reduce the number of answers requiring intensive processing. The interaction between task and subject variables results in appropriate or inappropriate strategies which in turn affect speed and accuracy. Results suggest that strategy formation and usage are the keys to explaining individual differences and an heuristic model is presented to explain the performance of individual subjects on the problems involved in the Minnesota Paper Form Board. The model can be used to predict performance on other tests; and as an aid to teaching subjects experiencing difficulties. The model presented incorporates strategy variation and is consequently mores complex than previously suggested models. It is argued that such complexity is necessary to explain the nature of a subject\u27s performance and is also necessary to perform diagnostic evaluation. Certain structural -features of the Minnesota Paper Form Board are questioned and suggestions for improvement included. The essential explanatory function of the strategy in use makes the prevalent group administration approach suspect in the prediction of future performance in spatial or vocational activity