Computer-simulated scenarios have been part of psychological research on problem solving for more than 40 years. The shift in emphasis from simple toy problems to complex, more real-life oriented problems has been accompanied by discussions about the best ways to assess the process of solving complex problems. Psychometric issues such as reliable assessments and addressing correlations with other instruments have been in the foreground of these discussions and have left the content validity of complex problem solving in the background. In this paper, we return the focus to content issues and address the important features that define complex problems.
Cet article aborde la question de la regulation de I'action humaine dans le contrde des systemes hautement complexes. La "regulation de I'action" recouvre I'interaction de la fixation des objectifs, des activites de prevision, de I'elaboration des hypotheses, du planning, de la prise de decision et de la reflexion. Des erreurs et des fautes caracteristiques relevant du planning et de la prise de decision sont decrites et rapportkes a divers aspects du systeme humain de traitement de I'information. Beaucoup de fautes et d'erreurs renvoient A un nombre restreint de caracteristiques d e I'esprit humain. On montre en outre qu'il n'est en rien facile d'kchapper a ces fautes puisque ces processus de traitement de I'information que detient I'esprit humain sont parfaitement fonctionnels dans d'autres contextes.This article deals with human action regulation when controlling very complex systems. "Action regulation" means the interaction of goal elaboration, forecasting activities, hypothesis formation, planning, decision making, and self reflection. Typical errors and mistakes in human planning and decision making are reported and related to characteristics of the human information processing system. It is demonstrated that a lot of very different errors and mistakes are based on a few characteristics of the human mind. Additionally we demonstrate that it is in no way simple to avoid these mistakes, as these information processing characteristics of the human mind are otherwise quite functional in a number of contexts.
This article describes PSI theory, which is a formalized computational architecture of human psychological processes. In contrast to other existing theories, PSI theory not only models cognitive, but also motivational and emotional processes and their interactions. The article starts with a brief overview of the theory showing the connections between its different parts. We then discuss the theory's components in greater detail. Key constructs and processes are the five basic human needs, the satisfaction of needs using the cognitive system, including perception, schemas in memory, planning, and action. Furthermore, emotions are defined and the role of emotions in cognitive and motivational processes is elaborated, referring to a specific example. The neural basis of the PSI theory is also highlighted referring to the "quad structure," to specific brain areas, and to thinking as scanning in a neural network. Finally, some evidence for the validity of the theory is provided.
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