| Fixation and structured imagination are labels applied by cognitive psychologists to the effects prior knowledge may have on performance in creative problem-solving tasks. This research proposes a conceptual model of creative problem-solving in which fixation and structured imagination may result in failure to produce an adequate solution to the problem. This model and the background literature indicate that it may be possible to discriminate between individuals having a tendency to suffer from these effects and those less likely to do so. Given an accurate diagnosis, it may also be possible to effectively intervene, thus averting failure due to these phenomena. A diagnostic instrument and experimental task were constructed and a pilot study conducted to test the instrument. Both the diagnostic instrument and task were subsequently revised and a final set of experiments conducted to determine whether (1) fixation and structured imagination can be observed in a software design task, (2) the diagnostic instrument reliably predicts these phenomena, and (3) the proposed interventions are effective in preventing failure caused by these phenomena. As a result of observations made during the final experiments, revisions to the conceptual model and a new line of research are proposed. |
