Modelling human problem solving with data from an online game

Abstract

Since the beginning of cognitive science, researchers have tried to understand human strategies in order to develop efficient and adequate computational methods. In the domain of problem solving, the travelling salesperson problem has been used for the investigation and modelling of human solutions. We propose to extend this effort with an online game, in which instances of the travelling salesperson problem have to be solved in the context of a game experience. We report on our effort to design and run such a game, present the data contained in the resulting openly available data set and provide an outlook on the use of games in general for cognitive science research. In addition, we present three geometrical models mapping the starting point preferences in the problems presented in the game as the result of an evaluation of the data set.