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Mnemonic Components of Aim Formation
Mnemonic Components of Aim Formation 0. K. TlKHOMlROV and v. v. ZNAKOV
1. Introduction: State of the problem
Different approaches towards investigating the interaction of thought and memory have emerged. They include studies of the “functional fixation” of past experience, analyses of the role of knowledge for the development of thinking, investigations into the influence of the thinking process on the exploitation and change of knowledge and into the influence of thinking on storing efficiency. Comparatively little research, however, has been done on the influence of the operative memory on the efficiency of thinking activity. In modern psychology of thinking more and more significance is being attached to transition from the analysis of solution processes of ready and well formulated tasks to the investigation of processes of putting new tasks independently, to the study of the formation of conscious aims. Various mechanisms of aim formation have been specified (2). In the subject’s thinking activity the formation of aims acts as a truly productive process. The question arises as to what extent the process of aim formation depends on the characteristics of the operative memory. In this sense the traditional problems of thinking and memory, of productive and reproductive processes have been reformulated by us as the problem of mnemonic components of aim formation. Regarding thinking we have been interested in the process-of the forming of new aims, regarding memory we have restricted our field of investigation to short-term memory being involved in the activity of thinking. 2. Method As an experimental task we chose the “hermit game” and as a variant the “Greek cross”. On a board with 81 squares (9 x 9) nine pieces were arranged cruciformly (fig. 1). The demand was to leave one piece on the board by a series of moves. A move had to obey the following rules: each piece may be lept over from a neighbouring square, from the right, left, above or below; diagonal jumps are forbidden; each move has to be a jump over a neighbouring piece then removed from the board. The pieces entering the configuration are divided into four groups by their functional characteristics: pieces moves can be done with, pieces which can be lept over, pieces changing the total position as a result of their move, pieces not allowed to do moves. Different groups of Ss solved this problem either by a clear-active plan, moving the pieces on the board really, or by a clear-pictorial plan, following possible moves with their eyes only. It was the comparison of specialities in solving one and 5
I i l i x / I l o h a n n - Cogtiition
65
the same task by the clear-active or clear-pictorial plan which formed our basic methodical approach towards deriving the role of operative memory, its overstraining in the case of the clearpictorial solution. Recorded were: time for solving the problem, results of the solution, the verbal statements of the Ss, which emerged with their actions and the configurations and processes of their transformation objectively possible at the given moment, and which allowed to assess the aims formulated by the Ss. In a series the quantitative move-
Fig. 1
ments of the Ss were registered (in this series the shifting of the pieces during the clear-active solution was done by the experimenter). 336 Ss aged from 17 to 32 took part in the different experimental series. 3. Results
3.1. Generalfunctions of the operative memory In solving thinking problems the fixation and subsequent remembrance of task rules are essential. They determine the admissible and sufficient changes of conditions; the fixation and remembrance of a varying selection of demands for intermediate and final results during the course of solution; the fixation, transformation in memory and remembrance of intermediate and final results imaginable from the prospect of the achieved visual situation or the sequence of actions carried out; the fixation and remembrance of the dynamics of clearly elaborated task conditions. 3.2. General characteristic of aim formation The processes of aim formation, investigated under the experimental situation, are classified into two kinds: a) the determination of the final result under the condition of the variation of demands, - entering memory-for the final result (expl.: “The last piece is to be left in the centre”); b) derivation of partial aims that are independent with regard to the final aim and that are formulated on the basis of externally made demands for the final result (expl. : “The pieces must be concentrated in the centre”). The formation of aims can be divided into three stages: At the first stage aims are formulated in a most general way: “Find a sequence of actions leading to the required result.” At the second stage the imprecise partial
66
aims of the first stage are differentiated and put precisely under gnostic and mnemonic aspects. At the third stage of aim formation the Ss arrive at more precise ideas of the operative and figurative components of the solution. 3.3. Comparison of solution processes by clear-active and clear-pictorial plans On the average the task is solved nearly seven times slower by a clear-figurative plan than by a clear-active one. Accordingly, the mean time for one move was 9 s and 41 s, respectively. In clear-pictorial solutions the number and variety of mnemonic mistakes is rising. With this type of solution the process of forming the final aim retards considerably (see tab. 1 and 2). Hence follows that the properties of human Tab. 1 : The number of Ss (in %) that showed the correct starting point in answering the question for the last piece’s place Thinking style
I
I
Stages of problem solving
Clearactive thinking
61%
80%
100%
Clearpictorial thinking
47%
70%
85%
100%
Tab. 2: The number of Ss (in %) that showed the correct piece in answering the question which piece will remain on the board
Thinking style
I I
Stages of problem solution
after after after after after 2nd move 3d move 4th move 5th move 6th move
Clearactive thinking
40%
60%
83%
Clearpictorial thinking
40%
45%
60%
I
100%
1
100%
memory, the pecularities of its perception may serve as presuppositions for the formation of aims to keep an image of the aim specific. These presuppositions include: preference to operating in the right and upper part of the board compared to the left and below part; the effort to choose “compact” configurations in which the members are specially close together; regularities of interference in memory; the difficulty of choosing actions from homogeneous visual structures and the ease in the case of 6*
67
choices from heterogeneous dissimilar configurations; the dislike to operate in directions which imply the reactivation of high cognitive effort. As experiments show, the qualitative characteristics of aims depend on the degree of exactness of the Ss’ imaginations being stored in memory, anticipated situations, their transformation and interactions. The dynamics of aim transformation depends on transformations in memory: in problem solving the faster the dominance of image memory fixing the visual situation is transformed into the storage of actions the faster the transformation of aims takes place. Transitions in memory (schematization) are realized during the repetition of earlier performed activities and the revision of the members of the visual task structure. Considerable stress on the memory involving mnemonic tendencies which arise and the setting of mnemonic aims, may disturb the formation of gnostic aims, which are directed towards the solution of problems of thinking. We established three stages of transforming aims in dependence on the character of situation images contained in memory and the procedure of their transition. The functions and interactions of conscious mnemonic components of aim formation were registered at each stage. Mainly arbitrary mnemonic components get into the first stage of aim formation which directs thinking activity. At the second stage the inclusion of conscious components leading to the origin of mnemonic partial aims takes place. A t the third stage the coordination of arbitrary and non-arbitrary components takes place. There appeared to be three levels of material organisation connected to the problem situation in the subject’s memory that serve to formulate aims during the three stages of aim formation: 1) Formulation of the spatial structure of the problem situation; 2) Addition of operative components of the solution; 3) Mutual functioning of spatial and operative components. Two types of aim formation were found, and the dynamics of their relations was discovered. Aims, that are formed “from above”, contain few images of visual structure and a large number of prognosticated activities. Aims that are formed “from below” contain detailed images of the configuration with few prognoses. During thinking search a tendency of the gradual transition of the aim formation “from below” to the aim formation “from above” can be observed. There were subjective units of thinking activity, that are formulated in memory on the basis of the creation of mutual connections of the activities for solving the task, operating steps as activity chains. 3.4. Characteristic of eye movements More movements from field to field and a predominance of the short fixation (0.1-0.4 s) were observed in the clear-active search. Fixations taking more time (0.5-1 .O s) refer to pieces able to perform moves. In clear-pictorial thinking a smaller number of movements from field to field became apparent; the number of fixations taking more time increased. The confrontation of the eye movements and the data of the verbal report allowed to establish a connection between this activity and the studies on aim formation: The process of aim formation was characterized by a higher number of eye movements with short fixations; in aims already formed a smaller number of movements which
68
can be characterized by following the moves little by little but with fixations taking longer time, became apparent. Registration of the eye movements allowed to objectify some mistakes of memory, and to find out real units of the Ss’ activities (schemes). The latter were reflected in stepwise limitations to field-to-field movements, in a total integration of the analysed situation, in a decrease in the amplitudes of movement. The known correspondence between the eye movements during solving problems by a clear-pictorial plan and corresponding characteristics of aim formation is confirmed. This corroborates the existence of that additional difficulty of aim formation, that emerges when raising the stress on the operative memory. 4. Discussion
The experimental investigations carried out supported the hypothesis of the influence of memory stress on the processes of aim formation; they allowed to contribute t o the characteristic of the contents of memory images, of dynamic transitions of these images, of the correlation between arbitrary and non-arbitrary mnemonic processes. All findings confirmed the fact that the study of mnemonic components of aim formation forms an important line of investigating thinking, memory and their correlations. Today, the investigation of both thought and memory is carried out intensively in the context of so called Cognitive Psychology, which regards man as a structure for information processing. The information based starting point, however neglects such an important aspect of human activity as is the establishing of new aims (I). In this connection we should like to raise the question of the status of Cognitive Psychology at the present stages of development of our science; Should Cognitive Psychology be regarded as a direction covering a universal investigation of cognitive processes, or, on the contrary, as a partial line putting aside most significant characteristics of man’s cognitive activity? The data we obtained in our investigation demand that a universal investigation of thinking and memory analyses such characteristics of human cognition which the informational starting point used by Cognitive Psychology leaves aside. References LEONTJEW, A. N. : Tatigkeit, BewuRtsein, Personlichkeit, Berlin 1979 TIKHOMIROV, 0. K . : Psychological Mechanism of Aim Formation, Moscow 1977 (Russ.)
69
1. Introduction: State of the problem
Different approaches towards investigating the interaction of thought and memory have emerged. They include studies of the “functional fixation” of past experience, analyses of the role of knowledge for the development of thinking, investigations into the influence of the thinking process on the exploitation and change of knowledge and into the influence of thinking on storing efficiency. Comparatively little research, however, has been done on the influence of the operative memory on the efficiency of thinking activity. In modern psychology of thinking more and more significance is being attached to transition from the analysis of solution processes of ready and well formulated tasks to the investigation of processes of putting new tasks independently, to the study of the formation of conscious aims. Various mechanisms of aim formation have been specified (2). In the subject’s thinking activity the formation of aims acts as a truly productive process. The question arises as to what extent the process of aim formation depends on the characteristics of the operative memory. In this sense the traditional problems of thinking and memory, of productive and reproductive processes have been reformulated by us as the problem of mnemonic components of aim formation. Regarding thinking we have been interested in the process-of the forming of new aims, regarding memory we have restricted our field of investigation to short-term memory being involved in the activity of thinking. 2. Method As an experimental task we chose the “hermit game” and as a variant the “Greek cross”. On a board with 81 squares (9 x 9) nine pieces were arranged cruciformly (fig. 1). The demand was to leave one piece on the board by a series of moves. A move had to obey the following rules: each piece may be lept over from a neighbouring square, from the right, left, above or below; diagonal jumps are forbidden; each move has to be a jump over a neighbouring piece then removed from the board. The pieces entering the configuration are divided into four groups by their functional characteristics: pieces moves can be done with, pieces which can be lept over, pieces changing the total position as a result of their move, pieces not allowed to do moves. Different groups of Ss solved this problem either by a clear-active plan, moving the pieces on the board really, or by a clear-pictorial plan, following possible moves with their eyes only. It was the comparison of specialities in solving one and 5
I i l i x / I l o h a n n - Cogtiition
65
the same task by the clear-active or clear-pictorial plan which formed our basic methodical approach towards deriving the role of operative memory, its overstraining in the case of the clearpictorial solution. Recorded were: time for solving the problem, results of the solution, the verbal statements of the Ss, which emerged with their actions and the configurations and processes of their transformation objectively possible at the given moment, and which allowed to assess the aims formulated by the Ss. In a series the quantitative move-
Fig. 1
ments of the Ss were registered (in this series the shifting of the pieces during the clear-active solution was done by the experimenter). 336 Ss aged from 17 to 32 took part in the different experimental series. 3. Results
3.1. Generalfunctions of the operative memory In solving thinking problems the fixation and subsequent remembrance of task rules are essential. They determine the admissible and sufficient changes of conditions; the fixation and remembrance of a varying selection of demands for intermediate and final results during the course of solution; the fixation, transformation in memory and remembrance of intermediate and final results imaginable from the prospect of the achieved visual situation or the sequence of actions carried out; the fixation and remembrance of the dynamics of clearly elaborated task conditions. 3.2. General characteristic of aim formation The processes of aim formation, investigated under the experimental situation, are classified into two kinds: a) the determination of the final result under the condition of the variation of demands, - entering memory-for the final result (expl.: “The last piece is to be left in the centre”); b) derivation of partial aims that are independent with regard to the final aim and that are formulated on the basis of externally made demands for the final result (expl. : “The pieces must be concentrated in the centre”). The formation of aims can be divided into three stages: At the first stage aims are formulated in a most general way: “Find a sequence of actions leading to the required result.” At the second stage the imprecise partial
66
aims of the first stage are differentiated and put precisely under gnostic and mnemonic aspects. At the third stage of aim formation the Ss arrive at more precise ideas of the operative and figurative components of the solution. 3.3. Comparison of solution processes by clear-active and clear-pictorial plans On the average the task is solved nearly seven times slower by a clear-figurative plan than by a clear-active one. Accordingly, the mean time for one move was 9 s and 41 s, respectively. In clear-pictorial solutions the number and variety of mnemonic mistakes is rising. With this type of solution the process of forming the final aim retards considerably (see tab. 1 and 2). Hence follows that the properties of human Tab. 1 : The number of Ss (in %) that showed the correct starting point in answering the question for the last piece’s place Thinking style
I
I
Stages of problem solving
Clearactive thinking
61%
80%
100%
Clearpictorial thinking
47%
70%
85%
100%
Tab. 2: The number of Ss (in %) that showed the correct piece in answering the question which piece will remain on the board
Thinking style
I I
Stages of problem solution
after after after after after 2nd move 3d move 4th move 5th move 6th move
Clearactive thinking
40%
60%
83%
Clearpictorial thinking
40%
45%
60%
I
100%
1
100%
memory, the pecularities of its perception may serve as presuppositions for the formation of aims to keep an image of the aim specific. These presuppositions include: preference to operating in the right and upper part of the board compared to the left and below part; the effort to choose “compact” configurations in which the members are specially close together; regularities of interference in memory; the difficulty of choosing actions from homogeneous visual structures and the ease in the case of 6*
67
choices from heterogeneous dissimilar configurations; the dislike to operate in directions which imply the reactivation of high cognitive effort. As experiments show, the qualitative characteristics of aims depend on the degree of exactness of the Ss’ imaginations being stored in memory, anticipated situations, their transformation and interactions. The dynamics of aim transformation depends on transformations in memory: in problem solving the faster the dominance of image memory fixing the visual situation is transformed into the storage of actions the faster the transformation of aims takes place. Transitions in memory (schematization) are realized during the repetition of earlier performed activities and the revision of the members of the visual task structure. Considerable stress on the memory involving mnemonic tendencies which arise and the setting of mnemonic aims, may disturb the formation of gnostic aims, which are directed towards the solution of problems of thinking. We established three stages of transforming aims in dependence on the character of situation images contained in memory and the procedure of their transition. The functions and interactions of conscious mnemonic components of aim formation were registered at each stage. Mainly arbitrary mnemonic components get into the first stage of aim formation which directs thinking activity. At the second stage the inclusion of conscious components leading to the origin of mnemonic partial aims takes place. A t the third stage the coordination of arbitrary and non-arbitrary components takes place. There appeared to be three levels of material organisation connected to the problem situation in the subject’s memory that serve to formulate aims during the three stages of aim formation: 1) Formulation of the spatial structure of the problem situation; 2) Addition of operative components of the solution; 3) Mutual functioning of spatial and operative components. Two types of aim formation were found, and the dynamics of their relations was discovered. Aims, that are formed “from above”, contain few images of visual structure and a large number of prognosticated activities. Aims that are formed “from below” contain detailed images of the configuration with few prognoses. During thinking search a tendency of the gradual transition of the aim formation “from below” to the aim formation “from above” can be observed. There were subjective units of thinking activity, that are formulated in memory on the basis of the creation of mutual connections of the activities for solving the task, operating steps as activity chains. 3.4. Characteristic of eye movements More movements from field to field and a predominance of the short fixation (0.1-0.4 s) were observed in the clear-active search. Fixations taking more time (0.5-1 .O s) refer to pieces able to perform moves. In clear-pictorial thinking a smaller number of movements from field to field became apparent; the number of fixations taking more time increased. The confrontation of the eye movements and the data of the verbal report allowed to establish a connection between this activity and the studies on aim formation: The process of aim formation was characterized by a higher number of eye movements with short fixations; in aims already formed a smaller number of movements which
68
can be characterized by following the moves little by little but with fixations taking longer time, became apparent. Registration of the eye movements allowed to objectify some mistakes of memory, and to find out real units of the Ss’ activities (schemes). The latter were reflected in stepwise limitations to field-to-field movements, in a total integration of the analysed situation, in a decrease in the amplitudes of movement. The known correspondence between the eye movements during solving problems by a clear-pictorial plan and corresponding characteristics of aim formation is confirmed. This corroborates the existence of that additional difficulty of aim formation, that emerges when raising the stress on the operative memory. 4. Discussion
The experimental investigations carried out supported the hypothesis of the influence of memory stress on the processes of aim formation; they allowed to contribute t o the characteristic of the contents of memory images, of dynamic transitions of these images, of the correlation between arbitrary and non-arbitrary mnemonic processes. All findings confirmed the fact that the study of mnemonic components of aim formation forms an important line of investigating thinking, memory and their correlations. Today, the investigation of both thought and memory is carried out intensively in the context of so called Cognitive Psychology, which regards man as a structure for information processing. The information based starting point, however neglects such an important aspect of human activity as is the establishing of new aims (I). In this connection we should like to raise the question of the status of Cognitive Psychology at the present stages of development of our science; Should Cognitive Psychology be regarded as a direction covering a universal investigation of cognitive processes, or, on the contrary, as a partial line putting aside most significant characteristics of man’s cognitive activity? The data we obtained in our investigation demand that a universal investigation of thinking and memory analyses such characteristics of human cognition which the informational starting point used by Cognitive Psychology leaves aside. References LEONTJEW, A. N. : Tatigkeit, BewuRtsein, Personlichkeit, Berlin 1979 TIKHOMIROV, 0. K . : Psychological Mechanism of Aim Formation, Moscow 1977 (Russ.)
69