Problem-Solving Behavior in Compound Tasks by Children with Intellectual Disabilities

Abstract

The purposes of the present study were to examine the effects of gradual prompting upon problem-solving in compound tasks by children with intellectual disabilities, and to find out the characteristics of their problem-solving. The samples were 15 children 5.5 to 6 years old without disabilities and 15 children with disabilities, matched with the other children on MA (mean CA, 11.1 yr). The tasks were to categorize 4 out of 6 pictures arranged on a map, and to take the shortest route for collecting the 4 pictures. The experimenter's gradual prompting improved the participants' problem-solving. Problem-solving behavior was, however, unstable in both groups, probably due to the children's unstable ability to transform representation. The children with disabilities improved less when taking the shortest route, and were more influenced by distracters than the other children. This was regarded to be the result of difficulties in working memory and behavior control. Such characteristics were discussed in terms of the degree of task difficulty. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)