TY - JOUR
T1 - Rule acquisition events in the discovery of problem-solving strategies
AU - VanLehn, Kurt
N1 - Funding Information:
I would like to thank Bill Ball for implementing Teton and helping with the first analyses of the data, and Micki Chi and Ken Kotovosky for insightful comments on the text. This work was supported by the Personnel and Training Research Program, Psychological Sciences Division, Office the Naval Research, under contract NOtXl14-88-K-0086. and the Information Sciences Office of Naval Research, under contract NOOOl4-K-0678. Correspondence and requests for reprints should be sent Kurt VanLehn, Research and Development Center, Computer Science Department, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260.
PY - 1991
Y1 - 1991
N2 - Although there are many machine-learning programs that can acquire new problem-solving strategies, it is not known exactly how their processes will manifest themselves in human behavior, if at all. In order to find out, a line-by-line protocol analysis was conducted of a subject discovering problem-solving strategies. A model was developed that could explain 96% of the lines in the protocol. On this analysis, the subject's learning was confined to 11 rule acquisition events, wherein she temporarily abandoned her normal problem solving and focused on improving her strategic knowledge. Further analysis showed that: (1) Not all rule acquisition events are triggered by impasses; (2) Rules are acquired gradually, both because of competition between new and old rules, and because of the subject's apparently deliberate policy of gradual generalization. (3) This subject took a scientific approach to strategy discovery, even planning and conducting small experiments.
AB - Although there are many machine-learning programs that can acquire new problem-solving strategies, it is not known exactly how their processes will manifest themselves in human behavior, if at all. In order to find out, a line-by-line protocol analysis was conducted of a subject discovering problem-solving strategies. A model was developed that could explain 96% of the lines in the protocol. On this analysis, the subject's learning was confined to 11 rule acquisition events, wherein she temporarily abandoned her normal problem solving and focused on improving her strategic knowledge. Further analysis showed that: (1) Not all rule acquisition events are triggered by impasses; (2) Rules are acquired gradually, both because of competition between new and old rules, and because of the subject's apparently deliberate policy of gradual generalization. (3) This subject took a scientific approach to strategy discovery, even planning and conducting small experiments.
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U2 - 10.1016/0364-0213(91)80012-T
DO - 10.1016/0364-0213(91)80012-T
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:0002507911
SN - 0364-0213
VL - 15
SP - 1
EP - 47
JO - Cognitive Science
JF - Cognitive Science
IS - 1
ER -