12 Adult Age Differences in Traditional and Practical Problem Solving

Abstract

This chapter discusses the adult age differences in traditional and practical problem solving. Research with both traditional, abstract problem-solving tasks as well as research with practical, everyday tasks is reviewed. Intervention research aimed at facilitating problem-solving performance is also considered and professional creativity and productivity is explored. Performance on concept learning tasks has typically been found to decline with increasing age. On these tasks the subjects are presented with stimuli that vary in a number of dimensions and are told, with each presentation, whether the stimulus is a positive or negative example of the concept. From this information the subjects are supposed to determine what the concept is. The concept learning research indicates that it takes older adults more trials to determine what the concept is in a typical concept learning experiment. The research further indicates that it also takes older adults longer to shift from one concept to another.