The effect of order of presentation and experience on problem solving

The effects of order of presentation and amount of experience on errors and solution time were investigated. An interactive narrative puzzle was presented on a computer screen to 60 undergraduate students. Solution of the problem involved the integration of two path segments. Subjects in the Forward Condition were presented the path segments in the order in which they had to be traversed for solution. Subjects in the Backward Condition were exposed to the opposite order of presentation. Amount of experience was varied by permitting one, three, or five readings of the narrative