The present study was designed to test how well the measures of the cognitive constructs of M-space, cognitive style, and short-term storage space (STSS) could predict the amount of practice needed to induce successful problem solving behaviors, the ability to transfer behaviors to different contexts, and the readiness to abandon unsuccessful behaviors. Thirty-four non-science majors enrolled in a physical science course participated in the study. Those 23 students who did not use formal reasoning schemes to solve ratio problems on a pretest took part in the training phase designed to help them to induce the ratio scheme. The training consisted of balance beam and probability problems at five levels of difficulty corresponding to five levels of development of the ratio scheme. Most of the students induced strategies that permitted them to solve problems at the formal level during the training phase. The STSS could be a predictor for various aspects in the development of complex problem solving strategies. Factor analysis showed the Figural Intersection Test and the Group Embedded Figures Test as one factor and the Ratio Span and the Backward-digit Span Test as another factor. Some implications for science education research were discussed. (YP)