ERIC Number: ED215899
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1981
Pages: 125
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Expertise in Problem Solving.
Chi, Michelene T. H.; And Others
Based on the premise that the quality of domain-specific knowledge is the main determinant of expertise in that domain, an examination was made of the shift from considering general, domain-independent skills and procedures, in both cognitive psychology and artificial intelligence, to the study of the knowledge base. Empirical findings and theoretical models of research in physics problem-solving are detailed and summarized, followed by eight empirical studies indicating in general, the importance of differences in the knowledge bases of experts and of novices to their problem-solving success. Specifically, they show that: (1) it is difficult to use protocols of problem-solving episodes to illuminate the differences in the knowledge bases of experts and novices; (2) experts and novices perceive the problems themselves differently (novices respond to surface features of a problem while experts respond to its deep structure); (3) less successful novices have deficiencies in their declarative knowledge of physics; (4) novices tend to lack knowledge of when to use certain physics knowledge; and (5) deficiencies in knowledge appear to prevent novices at times from making key inferences for solving problems. These results and their implications for theories of intelligence are then discussed. (Author/JN)
Publication Type: Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: Office of Naval Research, Arlington, VA.; National Inst. of Education (ED), Washington, DC.
Authoring Institution: Pittsburgh Univ., PA. Learning Research and Development Center.
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A