Data Type Details: Logical Problem Solving ii

Details Pertaining to Logical Problem Solving ii

Principal Investigator: Alan Zonderman
Collaborating Investigators: David Arenberg, Leonard Giambra
Year First Collected: 1966
Year Last Collected: 1983
Frequency of Collection: Every 6 years
Subset Data Files on the VMS Cluster? Files info263.*, Inactive as of 11/97. For access to these data, please contact Dr. Paul Costa or Dr. Alan Zonderman.

Data Type Notes:

(none) Descriptive History:

Cumulative Cumulative
LP2SN1 Frequency Percent Frequency Percent
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Invalid 1 0.2 1 0.2
NoIndSol 35 7.2 36 7.4
Solved 403 83.1 439 90.5
SpecCase 46 9.5 485 100.0

Frequency Missing = 2
LP2 Prob2 - Solved?
Cumulative Cumulative
LP2SN2 Frequency Percent Frequency Percent
------------------------------------------------------
NoIndSol 35 8.4 35 8.4
Solved 337 80.4 372 88.8
SpecCase 47 11.2 419 100.0

Frequency Missing = 68
LP2 Prob3 - Solved?
Cumulative Cumulative
LP2SN3 Frequency Percent Frequency Percent
------------------------------------------------------
NoIndSol 7 2.2 7 2.2
Solved 269 82.8 276 84.9
SpecCase 49 15.1 325 100.0

Frequency Missing = 162
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DESCRIPTIVE HISTORY:

Logical problem solving. An experimental procedure was designed to measure effectiveness of reasoning. The apparatus consists of a display with six numbered and three lettered lights, each of which has an adjacent push-button, and a central light (G) that has no button. Each problem contains a set of logical relations indicated by arrows between lights. The ultimate task in each problem is to arrive at the outcome, G, via a sequence of inputs. The number of uninformative inputs is the primary measure. A set of logically identical problems is administered at least six years later. From 1962 to 1966, each problem was presented as a single task (Arenberg, 1974). From 1966 to 1974, for subjects who were administered these problems for the first time, each problem was presented in two parts to obtain independent measures of performance in analysis and synthesis.

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RELATED PROTOCOLS:

Concept problem solving.

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Investigators:

David Arenberg (mailto:dave@lpc.grc.nia.nih.gov)
Leonard Giambra (mailto:lmg@lpc.grc.nia.nih.gov)

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Frequency of collection: Every 6 years

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Inclusion & exclusion rules: None

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Publications using these data:

A longitudinal study of problem solving in adults<br>
Arenberg D. A longitudinal study of problem solving in adults.
Journal of Gerontology 1974;29(6):650-658.
A longitudinal study of an initial sample of 300 men whose ages ranged from 24 to 87 years was carried out using modifications of the logical problems devised by Johns. Cross-sectional results for all problems showed that, with increasing age, proportions of subjects who solved decreased and uninformative inputs increased. The mean interval between first and second measures was 6.7 years. Longitudinal measures of changes showed a mean decline in performance only for the group which was over 70 initially. Much of the decline was attributable to redundant inputs despite the fact that memory demands were minimized and the entire record of input-outcome events was always available. Six-year survival also was related to successful problem-solving in the first session.

Alan Zonderman abz@lpc.grc.nia.nih.gov
Laboratory of Personality & Cognition, National Institute on Aging, NIH

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