MODULE 12: THE GESTALT APPROACH

1. A situation in which there is an obstacle between a present state and a

goal state and it is not immediately obvious how to get around the
obstacle. ANSWER: Problem

2. The process of changing the problem’s representation and according to

gestalt psychologists, it is the key mechanism of problem-solving
ANSWER: Restructuring

3. Any sudden comprehension, realization, or problem solution that

involves a reorganization of a person’s mental representation of a
stimulus, situation, or event to yield an interpretation that was not
initially obvious ANSWER: Insight

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MODULE 12: THE GESTALT APPROACH
4. Problem that is solved by a process of systematic analysis, often using
techniques based on past experiences
ANSWER: Analytically based problem

5. People’s tendency to focus on a specific characteristic of the problem

that keeps them from arriving at a solution. ANSWER: Fixation

6. An effect that occurs when the ideas a person has about an object’s
function inhibit the person’s ability to use the object for a different
function. ANSWER: Functional fixedness