Problem Solving

Learner Variable · All learner variables
Evidence · 71 claims (50 show a difference, 10 mixed, 11 no difference) · 58 studies (30 causal, 9 review, 6 associational, 4 theoretical, 3 quant-synthesis, 3 qualitative, 3 design), q1–q4 · 14 of 58 report an effect size · 69 claims rest on one study

Description

Problem solving is the ability to work through a challenge that has no ready answer: defining the goal, drawing on relevant prior knowledge, resources and skills, generating options and choosing among them. The LVN record (written for adult learners) treats it broadly, covering everyday, career and academic problems and conflicts, and includes both critical and creative thinking within it. It can be measured with scenario-based tasks in which learners analyse realistic problems from home, family and work life.

For adults, problem solving bears on navigating personal, workplace and educational challenges. The account links it to fluid reasoning (relational reasoning is described as a key part of it), to working and short-term memory, to executive function, and to the decline of episodic memory in older adults, which can make recall harder during problem solving. Much of the connected material concerns creativity within problem solving, so the page overlaps with creativity; it also overlaps with general cognitive ability and critical thinking. Domain-specific problem solving in mathematics is covered by the mathematics learner-variable pages.

Implications

Context

• Matters for designs built around realistic or ill-structured problems, especially in adult, workplace and community education.
• Intrinsic interest in a topic and confidence in one's creativity are described as supporting creative problem solving.
• Collaborative settings may support creative problem solving when group members are inclusive.

Target Learners

• Adult learners facing everyday, career and academic problems.
• Older adults, whose metacognitive strategies and memory affect decision making and problem solving.

Target Learning Objectives

• Solving realistic, everyday and workplace problems.
• Creative and flexible solutions.
• Decision making.

Claims

• A peer assessment-based game development approach promotes elementary students' learning achievement, learning motivation and problem-solving skills more than conventional game development [+M] — instruction changes it
• A systematic review of AI in problem-based learning reports, as a dominant theme of its 50 studies, that AI tools support adaptive, personalized learning linked to better engagement and problem-solving [+M] — instruction changes it
• Adult players who studied worked examples scored significantly higher on a game-based problem-solving transfer question than a control group [+M] — instruction changes it
• After the TBL module, students were better prepared to design and implement independent final research projects [+W] — instruction changes it
• AI chatbots support skills development in writing, problem-solving, and group discussion facilitation [+M] — instruction changes it
• AI task scaffolding is positively associated with critical thinking and technical problem-solving among AI-using university students [+M] — instruction changes it
• AI verification literacy does not directly predict critical thinking or technical problem-solving [-W] — instruction changes it
• AI-assisted inquiry produced larger decision-making gains than inquiry-only and traditional instruction in secondary climate-change education [+M] — instruction changes it
• AI-supported inquiry-based learning did not produce a statistically significant improvement in students' critical problem-solving skills [-W] — instruction changes it
• All three instructional groups began at comparable, mostly low decision-making levels and all improved over the intervention [+W] — instruction changes it
• ChatGPT use in STEAM IBL is reported to enhance learner outcomes including motivation, critical thinking, engagement, and problem-solving [+M] — instruction changes it
• Classroom testing benefits facts (g = 0.524), concept learning (g = 0.644), and knowledge application in problem solving (g = 0.453). [+M] — instruction changes it
• College students who study integrated annotated illustrations alongside science text generate approximately 50% more creative solutions on transfer problems than students who view the same illustrations separately after reading [+M] — instruction changes it
• Direct instruction may create a lock-in that constrains search for novel solutions [+W] — instruction changes it
• Everyday Mathematics® showed positive effects on TAAS math subtests (Concepts, Operations, Problem Solving) with effect sizes of 0.25 to 0.31 that were not statistically significant after clustering correction [-W] — instruction changes it
• Functional fixedness — treating an object's or idea's function as fixed — blocks solutions that require reinterpreting it. [+W] — learners who differ on it differ in outcomes
• GAI-assisted DST creation produced significantly higher collaborative problem-solving skills than traditional methods among university students [+M] — instruction changes it
• GCLA use enhances higher-order thinking skills—critical thinking, problem-solving, and creativity—compared with traditional ChatGPT use [+M] — instruction changes it
• Gen-AI's effect on HOT is strongest for problem-solving ability (g = 0.745), followed by critical thinking (g = 0.691), with a smaller effect on creativity (g = 0.444) [+M] — instruction changes it
• GPT feedback in VR markedly improved problem-solving and critical thinking but had limited impact on creativity [+M] — instruction changes it
• Individual learnity graphs are unique, and their uniqueness becomes a source of innovation and creative problem solving [+W] — learners who differ on it differ in outcomes
• Intervention cohort scored significantly higher on creativity thinking, design skills, and problem solving, but not on presentation or attendance [+M] — instruction changes it
• Metacognitive strategies correlate strongly with problem-solving skills, and behavioural metrics correlate with task performance [+M] — learners who differ on it differ in outcomes
• On the problem solution criterion, verbal problem solving scores do not decline over four weeks and rise on the more complex problems [+W] — instruction changes it
• Productive failure students significantly outperformed lecture-practice and facilitated complex problem solving students on well-structured and higher-order application post-test problems [+M] — instruction changes it
• Profiles differ in self-perceived academic skills: Engaged and Literate users report the highest problem-solving and cognitive endurance gains, while Uncritical Reliant users report the highest independent thinking [+M] — learners who differ on it differ in outcomes
• Sixth graders scored significantly higher on posttests that included the seven-step problem-solving plan than on unformatted posttests [+W] — instruction changes it
• Student participation in validating and iteratively refining AI-generated simulations promotes physics understanding and problem-solving skills [+W] — instruction changes it
• Students most frequently reported that prompt-based tasks were Easier/Simpler/Faster and supported analyzing and solving problems, in thematic analysis of 200 reflections [+W] — instruction changes it
• Teachers report AI tools enhance students' higher-order scientific skills including experimental design, inquiry, hypothesis testing, and argumentation [+W] — instruction changes it
• The clearest AI-assisted advantages appeared on the stakeholder engagement, alternatives, implementation, and monitoring decision-making steps [+M] — instruction changes it
• The review reports, citing Karamustafaoğlu and Pektaş (2023), that inquiry-based STEM activities significantly enhance students' problem-solving skills and STEM awareness [+M] — instruction changes it
• The study's findings suggest AI-supported inquiry-based learning mainly supports creativity and affective development, with limited effect on problem-solving skills [~W] — instruction changes it
• Unscaffolded problem-solving before instruction lets students entertain exploratory hypotheses at the expense of experiencing initial failures [~W] — instruction changes it
• Problem solving accuracy showed age-related declines but no significant main effect of feedback; a marginal Age × Feedback interaction reflected age differences only within the high-PFB group [~M] — instruction changes it
• Portfolio analysis revealed children were critically and creatively engaged in the learning procedures [+M] — instruction changes it
• Collaborative group failure on ill-structured physics problems confers later individual problem-solving advantages over success on well-structured problems (productive failure) [+M] — instruction changes it
• Collaborative problem-solving students significantly outperformed individual problem-solving students on the electromagnetism problem-solving posttest [+M] — instruction changes it
• Eighth graders in a CPS group outperformed those in an IPS group on physics problem solving, with CPS narrowing high–low achievement gaps [+M] — instruction changes it
• In computer-mediated problem solving, students may attribute their problems to the technology rather than to their own work, complicating how they frame the problem context [~W] — instruction changes it
• Online problem-solving solution performance predicted students' posttest performance on both the concept test and problem-solving test [+M] — learners who differ on it differ in outcomes
• Micro productive failure (problem solving before instruction) improved sixth-graders' isomorphic algebraic procedural problem solving, with the advantage stable across one-day and one-week delays [+M] — instruction changes it
• Explicit scaffolding prompts elicited P1 (exploring) and P2 (planning) engagement at task start that groups did not show on the non-scaffolded task [+M] — instruction changes it
• Groups' distribution of the four problem-solving processes deviated less from the ideal distribution (lower Gini coefficients) on scaffolded than non-scaffolded tasks [+M] — instruction changes it
• Groups' final solution scores were significantly higher on the scaffolded task than the non-scaffolded task [+M] — instruction changes it
• Heuristic and algorithmic training conditions do not differ in posttest problem-solving performance [-M] — instruction changes it
• Scaffolded ill-structured tasks elicit a higher proportion of solution-evaluation (P4) turns and a lower proportion of problem-solving (P3) turns than non-scaffolded tasks [+M] — instruction changes it
• Video modeling training of self-assessment and task-selection skills improves secondary students' problem-solving performance after a self-regulated learning phase [+M] — instruction changes it
• Video-graph analysis shows scaffolded tasks produced more diverse process episodes, more fluent transitions between processes, and more P3–P4 oscillation than non-scaffolded tasks [+M] — instruction changes it
• Studying instructional and video modeling examples improved heredity problem-solving performance and self-assessment accuracy from pretest to posttest [+M] — instruction changes it
• Frequent use of reflective prompts related to better strategic problem-solving and conceptual understanding [+M] — instruction changes it
• In Experiment 1, I-PS students solved the initial problem better but PS-I students learned more from the subsequent instructional video [~M] — instruction changes it
• Mathematics test practice does not improve domain-general problem-solving ability [-M] — instruction changes it
• Building extensive, well-organized domain knowledge may enhance functional use of intelligence in novel problems [+W] — learners who differ on it differ in outcomes
• Representational pictures relate to better word problem-solving performance only with relatively simple tasks, with the largest effects for first-position-of-the-unknown problems [~M] — instruction changes it
• A prior meta-analysis found tactical interventions significantly improved decision-making but not skill execution compared with technical approaches [+M] — instruction changes it
• Intervention length may matter: a prior review found positive associations for decision-making and skill execution for interventions longer than 8 hours [~M] — instruction changes it
• Generative AI use shows divergent effects on creativity: weakened creative writing but increased creative problem-solving and idea quality [~W] — instruction changes it
• Informing learners about the to-be-monitored cue before problem-solving did not affect mental effort or problem-solving performance (Experiment 1) [-W] — instruction changes it
• No testing effect was found for acquiring problem-solving skills through worked example study across eight experiments [-M] — instruction changes it
• Problem-solving facilitates diagnostic competences independent of learners' professional knowledge base [+M] — learners who differ on it differ in outcomes
• Simultaneous and sequential instruction produce no immediate differences in solving basic or generalization math equivalence problems [-W] — instruction changes it
• Bilinguals may have a specific advantage in transferring understanding of novel symbolic rules to new contexts [+W] — learners who differ on it differ in outcomes
• Overall problem-solving performance did not differ significantly between DI-PS and PS-DI (p = .08) [-M] — instruction changes it
• Problem-solving performance improves significantly only when coherence and linking changes are combined, showing the predicted interaction [~M] — instruction changes it
• Inversion intervention did not significantly increase problems solved or attempted on a timed problem-solving measure [-M] — instruction changes it
• Solving inversion problems increases adults' self-reported use of associativity shortcuts on three-term problems [+M] — instruction changes it
• Solving only 'a + b – b' inversion problems replicates increased self-reported associativity shortcut use in a new sample [+M] — instruction changes it
• Controlling statistically for flexibility renders the training effect on word problem solving non-significant, suggesting flexibility explains the gains [-M] — instruction changes it
• Descriptively, the experimental group's strongest word problem solving gains from pretest to follow-up appeared for compare problems [~M] — instruction changes it
• Training restructuring strategies improves grade-2 students' word problem solving skills at four-week follow-up relative to a control group [+W] — instruction changes it

Measures

• Everyday Problem Solving Inventory (Cornelius & Capsi, 1987): task-based assessment in which learners analyse 48 real-life scenarios about family, home, conflict and managing information.

Related Learner Variables

• General Cognitive Ability: relational reasoning, part of fluid intelligence, is described as a key component of problem solving.
• Prior Knowledge: knowledge of the relevant domain supports creative solutions.
• Executive Function: inhibition and cognitive flexibility are linked to better creative problem solving.
• Working Memory: greater short-term and working memory capacity goes with better problem solving and creative thinking.
• Metacognition: metacognitive training has been reported to strengthen older adults' decision making.
• Motivation: intrinsic motivation and interest in a topic are described as driving creativity in problem solving.
• Self-Efficacy: confidence in one's own creativity can encourage positive attitudes to creative tasks.
• Social Awareness and Relationship Skills: inclusive social skills in a group may enhance creative problem solving.
• Communication Skills: oral communication projects such as debates are linked to self-reported gains in critical thinking.
• Long-Term Memory: declining episodic memory in older adults can make problem solving harder.
• Sleep: sleep may help problem solving through insight.
• Digital Literacy: judging online sources for bias and truthfulness is a problem-solving skill tied to digital literacy.

Examples

Key Sources

• Digital Promise. Learner Variability Navigator: Problem Solving (Adult Learner). lvp.digitalpromiseglobal.org. Licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

Page metadata

Field	Value
type	learner-variable
id	problem-solving
title	Problem Solving
description	A learner's ability to work through unfamiliar challenges by setting goals and bringing knowledge, resources and creative thinking to bear on a solution.
status	review
canonical	True
generated	by claude/unspecified on 2026-10-16
trust	unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content

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