Martha has lost her keys.She looks in her purse,only to find that they are not there.She looks in various places - rooms of her house,cushions of the sofa,even in the refrigerator - but she keeps coming back to her purse to make sure that the keys are not there.Martha's tendency to solve the problem using a successful past solution is an example of __________.
A) an algorithm
B) functional fixedness
C) the mental set
D) a heuristic

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Martha's tendency to keep going back to her purse to look for her keys is an example of mental set, which is a cognitive bias that arises from using a past successful solution to solve a current problem. She is stuck in a certain way of thinking and is unable to come up with a new solution or approach. Algorithm refers to a step-by-step process of problem-solving that is guaranteed to lead to a solution, while functional fixedness is the inability to see an object's potential uses beyond its typical uses. A heuristic is a mental shortcut or rule of thumb used to solve problems.

Martha Has Lost Her Keys