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Abstract
The present study investigated the impact of adult guidance on children's problem-solving performance. Children at three age levels (N = 24; preschool, kindergarten, second grade) each worked daily on one of three difficult, form-board puzzles for five consecutive days and for an additional day six days later. The experimental group received adult instruction on solving the puzzles during Days 2 and 3. Four measures of problem-solving performance were taken each day. Results indicated no main effects for treatment group, but there were significant differences in problem-solving performance as a function of age and trials. Adult guidance was not a necessary precursor to improvements in children's problem-solving performance. The results suggest that self-initiated and other-directed problem-solving activity play an active part in the development of cognitive and metacognitive skill.