{"id":441,"date":"2023-11-02T19:17:55","date_gmt":"2023-11-02T19:17:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/psychologyandsociety.com\/?p=441"},"modified":"2023-11-02T19:17:55","modified_gmt":"2023-11-02T19:17:55","slug":"problem-solving","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/psychologyandsociety.com\/index.php\/2023\/11\/02\/problem-solving\/","title":{"rendered":"Problem Solving"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u00a0by Brad Bell<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Problem solving is an important topic in psychology that is relevant to everyday life.\u00a0\u00a0 What is problem solving?\u00a0\u00a0 Below is one\u00a0problem solving definition:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Problem solving can be defined as the process of finding solutions to problems. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Problems can vary from being relatively simple (e.g., finding one’s keys), to complex problems that may involve goals that may take a significant amount of time to achieve (e.g., finding a new job).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There may not be any solutions that are applicable to all problems.\u00a0 Nonetheless, there may be some general problem-solving strategies that are relevant to many problems.\u00a0 In this article, I will present three basic strategies: developing subgoals, redefinng the problem, and thinking in a\u00a0creative manner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Developing Subgoals<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is a subgoal?\u00a0 A subgoal is simply a more specific goal that is part of the more general goal that one wishes to achieve.\u00a0 Developing subgoals may be helpful because it may make the problem seem more manageable.\u00a0\u00a0 Also, striving to achieve one subgoal may facilitate the achievement of another subgoal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00a0Here is one example.\u00a0 Imaging that you are having writer’s block and you cannot seem to get started writing your novel.\u00a0 You could develop subgoals in writing the novel. \u00a0These subgoals could involve certain elements of the novel.\u00a0 The elements of the novel, which can be viewed as subgoals, may include the themes, dialogue, plot, and characters.\u00a0 If you are having trouble with the plot, you could start with thinking of themes or developing the personalities of the characters.\u00a0 The themes may help you to develop a coherent plot consistent with the themes.\u00a0 Moreover, after you have a clear idea of the personalities of the characters, you may be able to develop clearer ideas about the plot by imagining how the characters would act in certain situations. \u00a0If you are having trouble with the dialogue, you may wish to start with creating the personalities of the characters. This may help by imagining what the characters would say in certain situations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Redefining the Problem<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00a0It is important to consider how one has defined the problem.\u00a0 This could influence what solutions would be applied to the problem, and whether the problem is fully addressed.\u00a0 Perhaps the problem is too narrowly conceptualized, and it may be a broader problem than one had imagined.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00a0Here is an example.\u00a0 Imagine that a person has become unemployed and is considering a change in a career.\u00a0 The person may define the problem as finding a job consistent with his or her values, interests, and ablilities.\u00a0 However, the person may have some difficulty finding an ideal job.\u00a0 There may be ways in the advertised jobs are not compatible with some of the person’s certain central values, do not involve a full utilization of the person’s talents, or only involve some of the person’s interests.\u00a0 A possible solution to this problem is to redefine the problem.\u00a0 The problem could be defined as finding a job or developing a business consistent with the person’s values, interests, and ablility.\u00a0 It is possible that the person may develop an idea for a business that would be more consistent with his or her values, abilities, and interests than any of the advertised jobs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thinking in a Creative Manner<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00a0<\/strong>Thinking in a creative manner may help to solve some problems.\u00a0 For example, imagine that you wish to write a nonfiction book that will be accepted by a publisher.\u00a0\u00a0 You will be writing a book on a topic in which there are other books on the same topic.\u00a0 You could consider how your proposed book may be different from other books on the same topic.\u00a0 Perhaps you could\u00a0present a new thesis in the book,\u00a0organize the ideas in the book in a unique way, or include\u00a0information in the book that is not included in other books.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0by Brad Bell Problem solving is an important topic in psychology that is relevant to everyday life.\u00a0\u00a0 What is problem solving?\u00a0\u00a0 Below is one\u00a0problem solving definition: Problem solving can be defined as the process of finding solutions to problems.  Problems can vary from being relatively simple (e.g., finding one’s keys), to complex problems that may … Continue reading “Problem Solving”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-441","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-problem-solving"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/psychologyandsociety.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/441","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/psychologyandsociety.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/psychologyandsociety.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/psychologyandsociety.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/psychologyandsociety.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=441"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/psychologyandsociety.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/441\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":442,"href":"https:\/\/psychologyandsociety.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/441\/revisions\/442"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/psychologyandsociety.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=441"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/psychologyandsociety.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=441"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/psychologyandsociety.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=441"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}