Problem-solving Sessions Research Articles

Short-term change in dental providers' diagnostic data recording behavior following an educational intervention

The short-term results of a quasi-experimental controlled trial of an educational intervention designed to improve dentists' and hygienists' diagnostic record-keeping behavior are described. Providers in 21 experimental practices received individualized performance feedback, participated in tutorial, problem-solving, and goal-setting sessions, and were offered technical assistance. The proportions of patient records containing notations for periodontal examination findings were determined through pre- and postintervention record audits in these offices and 15 control offices. Baseline notation rates, which were uniformly low, were not different between groups. Mean notation rates increased between five- and fifteenfold among experimental practices, and less than twofold among controls. The differences in amount of change were significant for two of the three indicator conditions when all patient records were included in the analyses and for all three conditions among a subset of patient records where the patient was known to exhibit the condition. This moderately intensive CDE effort resulted in substantial improvement in provider behavior, but postintervention notation rates, approximately 30%, represented incomplete adoption of recommended behaviors. The level of adoption suggests that more intensive CDE would be necessary for most providers to achieve reasonable performance standards.

Mothers' Internal Models of Relationships and Children's Behavioral and Developmental Status: A Study of Mother-Child Interaction

Interactional behavior of mothers and preschool children was studied in light of mothers' internal models of relationships and select child characteristics. Children with behavior problems who were developmentally intact (n = 20) and developmentally delayed (n = 20), and a matched nonclinic group (n = 24), were studied in a problem-solving session. Mothers' help and support, and children's approach to tasks, relationship to mother, and overall experience were scored. Mothers' internal models of relationships, based on descriptions of childhood relationships, were characterized as detached, preoccupied, or secure (attachment classifications). Results showed children's behavioral and developmental status, as well as mothers' internal models, to be associated with dyadic behavior. Children's behavior corresponded to mothers' internal models and to behavioral and developmental status even with the effects of mothers' behavior removed. Discriminant analysis correctly classified 93% of the sample into clinic and nonclinic groups and into the 3 attachment classifications.

Mothers' Internal Models of Relationships and Children's Behavioral and Developmental Status: A Study of Mother-Child Interaction

Interactional behavior of mothers and preschool children was studied in light of mothers' internal models of relationships and select child characteristics. Children with behavior problems who were developmentally intact (n = 20) and developmentally delayed (n = 20), and a matched nonclinic group (n = 24), were studied in a problem-solving session. Mothers' help and support, and children's approach to tasks, relationship to mother, and overall experience were scored. Mothers' internal models of relationships, based on descriptions of childhood relationships, were characterized as detached, preoccupied, or secure (attachment classifications). Results showed children's behavioral and developmental status, as well as mothers' internal models, to be associated with dyadic behavior. Children's behavior corresponded to mothers' internal models and to behavioral and developmental status even with the effects of mothers' behavior removed. Discriminant analysis correctly classified 93% of the sample into clinic and nonclinic groups and into the 3 attachment classifications.

Family intervention after stroke: does counseling or education help?

Two interventions for improving stroke caregiver knowledge, stabilizing family function, promoting patient adjustment, and enlisting the use of social resources after stroke were compared with routine medical and nursing care of stroke patients (n = 61) at a 440-bed Veterans Administration Medical Center. The education intervention (n = 64) consisted of classroom instruction for caregivers about basic stroke care principles. The counseling condition (n = 63) consisted of education plus seven follow-up problem-solving sessions with a social worker (for the caregiver). Six months and 1 year after the stroke, both interventions significantly improved caregiver knowledge and stabilized some aspects of family function better than routine care. Counseling was consistently more effective than education alone and resulted in better patient adjustment at 1 year. Neither intervention influenced the use of social resources.

A culturally sensitive approach to tribal governance issue management

There are a number of obstacles to stronger tribal governments, including the prevailing cultural attitude toward Indian groups and the historical lack of support for efforts of Native Americans to build their own governmental systems. However, there is a growing realization among Indian tribes of the need to take firm control of many governmental functions. In working to resolve this situation, careful consideration must be given to the appropriateness of the approach utilized. The cultural traditions of the Indian community, based on consensus, often collide with the dispute resolution approaches imposed by non-Indian law and tradition. Utilizing a culturally sensitive approach to complex problem-solving, twelve tribal leaders participated in a problem-solving session designed to focus on the tribal governance problematique. (The term “problematique” is used here to connote that the tribes are faced with a system of interlocking issues.) The participants identified the significant tribal governace issues for the next decade, organized these issues for appropriate action, and developed a preliminary field representation of options/initiatives for leaders in the Indian community to consider for action. Participants' structuring of tribal governance issues resulted in a strongly coupled problematique, with a complexity metric significantly larger than problematic situations faced by most large organizations.

Productivity loss in brainstorming groups: Toward the solution of a riddle.

We conducted four experiments to investigate free riding, evaluation apprehension, and production blocking as explanations of difference in brainstorming productivity typically observed between real and nominal groups. In Experiment 1, we manipulated assessment expectations in group and individual brainstorming. Although productivity was higher when subjects worked under personal rather than collective assessment instructions, type of session still had a major impact on brainstorming productivity under conditions that eliminated temptation to free ride. Experiment 2 demonstrated that inducing evaluation apprehension reduced productivity in individual brainstorming. However, failure to find an interaction between evaluation apprehension and type of session in Experiment 3 raises doubts about evaluation apprehension as a major explanation of productivity loss in brainstorming groups. Finally, by manipulating blocking directly, we determined in Experiment 4 that production blocking accounted for most of productivity loss of real brainstorming groups. The processes underlying production blocking are discussed, and a motivational interpretation of blocking is offered. In his influential book, Osborn (1957) suggested brainstorming as a method of group problem solving that considerably increases quality and quantity of ideas produced by group members. Brainstorming groups are traditionally given instructions designed to free individual members from inhibiting effects of self-criticism and criticism by others during problem-solving session. The rules behind brainstorming are as follows: keep in mind that more ideas better and wilder ideas better, improve or combine ideas already suggested; and do not be critical. Osborn (1957) claimed that if these rules are followed the average person can think up twice as many ideas when working with a group than when working alone (p. 229).

Group Approach to Solving Problems (GRASP) as an Option for Introductory Geology

One option in the introductory geology course for non-science students at Ohio State University uses a modified guided-design format that has generated student enthusiasm for active learning while producing achievement-test scores similar to those obtained in the traditional course. One of the advantages of the modified guided-design approach is that students develop superior skills in problem solving and group dynamics. The Group Approach to Solving Problems (GRASP) option has two lectures and three problem-solving sessions weekly that cover physical- and historical-geology topics. Most of the problems used in the GRASP program have been modified from exercises in our traditional audio-visual tutorial self-paced labs and include study of minerals, rocks, processes, maps, earth history, and the application of this work to the study of North American settings. Most problems are completed in one session. The homework includes short problems, programmed instruction, and self-guided field trips. Grading is ba...

Clinical relevance: an issue in biostatistical training of medical students.

Significant trends in teaching biostatistics to medical students include: recognition of the dependence of advancement in the medical sciences upon the quantitative sciences; integration of biostatistics and other disciplines such as epidemiology and community medicine; increased emphasis on clinical relevance through the introduction of such topics as medical decision-making, evaluation of diagnostic test, genetic counselling and evaluating health-science literature; growing emphasis on analytic skills and computer literacy as precipitated by the presence of computer-based patient and medical information systems, expert systems, imaging and signal analysis systems; the emergence of new applications of statistics in health and medicine; and changes in the learning environment, for example emphasis on small-group discussions and problem-solving sessions. The evolution and future directions of biometrical training in medicine as precipitated by these trends, and the response of course directors at the Medical University of South Carolina to the demand for a 'new' curriculum in biostatistics for medical students are described.

How we teach applied, integrated physiological sciences.

Integrated Physiological Sciences is a second year course in Human Physiology, Biochemistry and Basic Pharmacology and is offered to an integrated class of students of medicine, dentistry, nutrition science and pharmacy. The Applied course was specifically designed to complement didactic lectures by assisting students to learn by controlled self discovery and problem-solving. Specific constraints are a student to staff ratio of approximately 240:6 and limited laboratory facilities.The Applied course is based on a structure of seven staggered cycles of 3 weeks each, with every cycle consisting of a formal practical (under lecturer supervision) in the first week, an open practical (practicals with minimal supervision or demonstration/exhibitions) in the second week and finally a problem-solving tutorial session (under lecturer direction, but not under strict/rigid control).Each lecturer is assigned two groups of approximately 20 students who he directs through each of the 21 weekly activities of the course....

Generation and Development of Strategy on a Logical-Deduction Task

An experiment was conducted to assess the generation and development of strategic expertise during problem solving. 40 undergraduates solved four nontrivial logical-deduction problems in a 1-hr period. Even though the instructions were deliberately impoverished regarding strategic hints, orderly effective uniform strategies emerged near the outset of the problem-solving session, and they emerged at a faster rate than had been previously thought. The decision-making process underlying generation and development of strategy was nonMarkovian. The rapid emergence of expertise seen in this study seems to contrast with the view of strategic expertise implicit in much of the literature on problem solving, namely, that such expertise develops as a result of lengthy experience with the task.

Natural language with discrete speech as a mode for human-to-machine

A voice interactive natural language system, which allows users to solve problems with spoken English commands, has been constructed. The system utilizes a commercially available discrete speech recognizer which requires that each word be followed by approximately a 300 millisecond pause. In a test of the system, subjects were able to learn its use after about two hours of training. The system correctly processed about 77 percent of the over 6000 input sentences spoken in problem-solving sessions. Subjects spoke at the rate of about three sentences per minute and were able to effectively use the system to complete the given tasks. Subjects found the system relatively easy to learn and use, and gave a generally positive report of their experience.

An evaluation of individualized behavioral obesity treatment and maintenance strategies

The present study examined the efficacy of individualized behavioral obesity treatment and maintenance procedures. Three behavioral treatments (group-administered standardized treatment, individually administered standardized treatment, and individually administered individualized treatment) were crossed with two maintenance strategies (individual problem-solving sessions and optional weighins). Of the 49 obese women who entered the 10-week program, 42 completed it. No differences emerged among treatments at posttest. However, during the 91/2 month period from posttest to follow-ups, subjects in the standardized group treatment and the individualized treatment continued to lose weight, while those in the individually administered standardized treatment regained much of the weight they had lost in treatment. The individual problem-solving maintenance procedure was significantly more effective than optinal weight-ins for producing weight loss during the maintenance period. Furthermore, during the maintenance period, treatment and maintenance strategies interacted such that subjects receiving individually administered standardized treatment with optinal weigh-ins relapsed significantly. In contrast, the other group either maintained their posttest weight or continued to lose.

Playful precursors of problem solving in preschoolers.

The results of a number of recent studies suggest that play serves to create specific skills as well as a special, flexible set for innovative thinking and problem solving. In this study, an analysis was made of object play components to determine whether the specific skills evidenced in the combinatorial activity of play and/or the flexible set suggested by the use of fantasy were related to performance on a problem-solvin g task. Seventy-six female and 64 male preschoolers were permitted to play for 8 minutes with a number of sticks of varying length as well as with a number of blocks. A subset of these materials was subsequently made available in a problem-solving session in which solution could be achieved by joining sticks to create a tool to retrieve a lure. Significant correlations were found between (a) the discovery of the solution principle and (b) the quality of combinatorial activity during play and problem-solving solution time. Nonsignificant correlations were found between all other play measures, including nonliteral object use and solution time. The results are discussed in relation to recent research relating play and convergent and divergent problem-solving skills. Some resolutions to a number of apparent inconsistencies in the literature are suggested.

Difficulties in Genetics Problem Solving

Richard R. Tolman is a Staff Associate at the Biological Sciences Curriculum Study, 833 W. South Boulder Road, Louisville, CO 80027, and Adjunct Associate Professor, School of Education, University of Colorado, Boulder. He received his B.S. and M.S.Ed. degrees from the University of Utah and the Ph.D. degree from Oregon State University. He has taught junior high general science and health at South Davis Junior High School and general biology at Mount Hood Community College, Gresham, Oregon. He has been a member of the BSCS staff since 1969. The Center for Educational Research and Evaluation received an NSF grant under the Research in Science Education (RISE) program to conduct an expert-novice study of problem solving in genetics. Three different types of genetics problems were used in the study-a monohybrid cross, a codominance problem, and a problem with sex-linked inheritance. High school students were asked to solve these problems in a think-outloud mode. Each problem-solving session was recorded on audio tape. Thirty junior or senior students in one Colorado high school who had previously completed a sophomore-level biology course were the subjects of the study. While analyzing the typed transcripts of the problem-solving sessions, and the worksheets used by the students, some common patterns began to emerge. Although these common patterns did not relate specifically to the goals of the study, they did provide insight into problem-solving methodology and seemed important and worthy of reporting. It should be noted that this is not an attempt to generalize conclusions to the population of high school biology students. The results apply only to the group within this study. However, correspondence with colleagues at the University of Wisconsin and at West Virginia University indicate that students' problem solving in genetics at those institutions is yielding similar results. One of the major difficulties encountered by the 30 students was understanding the concept that the pairs of alleles in an offspring are the result of transmission of one allele from each of the parents of the offspring. More specifically, the students experience difficulty in associating the alleles with chromosomes and chromosome behavior and the segregation and random assortment during the first division of meiosis. While constructing Punnett squares, students would commonly assign two alleles to each parent for an F1 trait. This error was manifested in the production of a Punnett square similar to that in figure 1. This resulted in offspring with four alleles for each trait. Only 6 of 30 students (20%) accurately described the parental source of each allele in a pair of alleles for normal vision (M) and myopia (m).

Type A behavior, need for control, and reactions to group participation

The present study examines the behavior of Type A coronary-prone subjects in group problem-solving sessions. Subjects discuss possible solutions to two problems in same-sex groups containing both Type As and Bs. As are much more likely than Bs to be seen as leaders and are rarely nominated as the least helpful member. Although A and B leaders are both seen as moderately likeable, A leaders' problem solutions are rated as lower in quality. Manipulations of problem importance and incentive for good solutions have similar effects on As and Bs. The results are discussed as being generally consistent with the proposal that Type As are primarily motivated by a need for control. Some indirect support is obtained for the idea that As are more susceptible than Bs to learned helplessness.

The effects of unequal competence and sex on achievement and self-presentation

Female and male college students were divided into high ability and low ability groups on the basis of scores on a problem-solving task. In a second problem-solving session, they worked with a same- or opposite-sex partner whose performance they were accurately informed had been much more or much less competent than their own at the first session. The achievement of highly competent females was higher when their partner was a less competent female than a less competent male. The performance of less competent males and females was lower when their partner was a highly competent female rather than a highly competent male. Results suggested that self-presentation concerns aroused by sex of partner and relative ability can inhibit achievement.

Group problem-solving sessions in PSI physics courses

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Systematic instruction in interpretive aspects of laboratory medicine

It is increasingly important for physicians to develop competence in ordering and interpreting laboratory tests. A review of the literature revealed no formal discussion of systematic instruction in the interpretive aspects of laboratory medicine. The goals, organization, instructional approaches, and assessment of a course offering such instruction are described here. Students are expected to develop an algorithmic approach to ordering and interpreting laboratory tests in the course of diagnosing and managing clinical problems in the major areas of medicine. Instructional approaches include lectures, case problem-solving sessions, and independent study. There has been an exponential growth in the number of students electing to take this course. Students respond enthusiastically to most aspects of the course. They are rated significantly higher on appropriate criterion measures in subsequent clinical electives than students who have not had such formal instruction in laboratory medicine during the senior years.

Cooperative versus Conflictive Problem Solving in Three Telecommunication Modes

48 two-person teams communicated through channels simulating various modes of telecommunication, teletypewriter, telephone, and closed-circuit television, and, as a control, face-to-face conversation. Each team was required to solve one of four problems. Two cooperative problems, a class scheduling and a geographic orientation problem, required the mutual exchange of factual information to reach the unique problem solution. Two conflictive problems, an issue ranking and a budget negotiation problem, were formulated to engender contention between the two team members. Performance was assessed on three classes of dependent measures: time to solution, behavioral measures of activity, and measures of verbal productivity. Additionally, the protocols and outcomes of the conflictive problem-solving sessions were examined to arrive at a measure of the degree of persuasion exhibited by the two communicators. For both kinds of problem solving, there was a sharp dichotomy in performance, on all three classes of dependent variable, between the teletypewriter mode and the other three modes all of which had a voice channel. Solutions to all problems in the voice modes were much faster but at the same time far more verbose than those in the teletypewriter mode. The addition of a visual channel to a voice mode does not appreciably decrease solution times, nor does it matter whether the visual channel is “live,” that is, face-to-face, or mediated by a closed-circuit television system. For the most part, mode effects were robust and held for all problems. The characteristics of the several modes of communication were largely independent of the kind of task assigned to the teams of subjects.

Marital Power and Marital Happiness in Relation to Problem-Solving Ability

Data on intrafamily power relations, obtained by observing the interaction of husband-wife-child groups during a laboratory problem-solving session, are related to ratings of marital happiness. Families above the median in husband-to-wife power tend to be high in marital happiness, but no difference in marital happiness was found when families with lowand high-power wives were compared. High parent-tochild power was associated with high marital happiness, but high child-to-parent power was associated with low marital happiness. The findings are interpreted as reflecting stresses which occur as the power structure of the family changes from its present hierarchicalform to a more equalitarian form. However, since low husband power was fbound to be associated with low problem-solving ability, part of the low happiness ratings of families with low-power husbands probably reflects dissatisfaction with the low competence rather than the low power of the husband.