MOVEMENTS IN THE STRUCTURE OF INSIGHT PROBLEM SOLVING (THE CASE OF NINE-DOT PROBLEM)

Existing data about the effect of concomitant or preceding motor activity on the process of insight problem solving conflicts with modern theories of insight. Therefore, it requires more detailed research of motor activity in the insight problem solving. This study investigates the regular changes of motor activity in the process of solving a classical insight problem “9 dots” (nine-dot problem). To register the motor activity parameters (length of the motor units, velocity of implementation of the motor units, duration of the pauses between the motor units) and to present conditions of the problem a tablet was used. As a result, persistent differences in the motor activity were found between successful and unsuccessful solvers in the initial and final stage of the problem solution. It turned out that successful solvers demonstrated a greater length of motor units (especially at the final stage of the solution) than unsuccessful ones. At the same time, differences in the duration of pauses between the motor units atthe initial and final stages of the solution were not found. Subjects who did and did not solve the problem do not differ in the duration of pauses between the motor units. It was found that at the final stage the frequency of the “fast” lines increases which can be associated primarily with the “offline” planning of motor activity that is the planning preceding the activity itself, rather than proceeding in parallel with it.

Abstract licence: CC BY-NC

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