Although many anecdotes suggest that creative insights often arise during mind wandering, empirical research is still sparse. In this study, the number reduction task (NRT) was used to assess whether insightful solutions were related to mind wandering during the incubation stage of the creative process. An experience sampling paradigm was used to…

Creativity has been conceptualized as involving 2 distinct components; divergent thinking, the search for multiple solutions to a single problem, and convergent thinking, the quest for a single solution either through an analytical process or the experience of insight. Studies have demonstrated that these abilities can be improved by cognitive…

This study investigated the effects of working in dyads and their associated gender composition on performance (solution rate and time) and process variables (number of impasses, number of passed solutions, and number of problem solving suggestions and interactions) in a set of classic insight problem solving tasks. Two types of insight problems…

We investigated whether 6- and 7-year-olds and 9- and 10-year-olds, as well as adults, process object dimensions independent of or in interaction with one another in a perception and action task by adapting Ganel and Goodale's method for testing adults ("Nature", 2003, Vol. 426, pp. 664-667). In addition, we aimed to confirm Ganel and Goodale's…

This article is about experimentation in both practical and mental activity and uses data from a series of studies with preschool children. The article focuses on personal experimentation, which is aimed at discovering relations, rather than the more utilitarian experimentation that is aimed at solving practical tasks. Personal experimentation…

From an early age, so much emphasis goes into teaching children the fundamentals of color theory, in particular the primary colors of red, yellow, and blue. Toys, building blocks, furniture, and so many other items used in a preschool environment are manufactured in these three colors. Yet, recent research has uncovered that babies as young as…