Skip to main content Accessibility help

We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.

Close cookie message
×
Hostname: page-component-cb9f654ff-c75p9 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-08-03T14:21:00.441Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Chapter 10 - The Insight Memory Advantage

from IV - After Insight

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 May 2024

By
Amory H. Danek  and
Jennifer Wiley
Edited by
Carola Salvi ,
Jennifer Wiley  and
Steven M. Smith
Carola Salvi
Affiliation:
John Cabot University, Rome
Jennifer Wiley
Affiliation:
University of Illinois, Chicago
Steven M. Smith
Affiliation:
Texas A & M University
Get access

Summary

Aha! experiences are often very well recalled. The idea of insight leaving an indelible mark on memory was put forward by the Gestalt psychologists, yet has remained under-studied. This chapter provides an overview the existing empirical evidence for an insight memory advantage and possible explanations for why insight enhances memory. Several studies have focused on the phenomenological aspect of insight by showing that solutions associated with Aha! experiences are remembered better than those without, even after delays of up to two weeks. Confidence (i.e., a metacognitive reaction) and pleasure (i.e., an affective reaction) were also shown to play a role. On the other hand, there could also be a potential association between solution processes involving restructuring (i.e., the cognitive aspect of insight) and better memory. At present a clearer role is seen for the phenomenological effects of insight experiences on memory, but more work is needed that explores both phenomenological and cognitive aspects of insight in the same studies.

Keywords

insightproblem solvingmemoryrestructuringaha! experience

Information

Type
Chapter
Information
The Emergence of Insight , pp. 199 - 220
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2024

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Book purchase

Temporarily unavailable

References

Adams, L. T., Kasserman, J. E., Yearwood, A. A., et al. (1988). Memory access: The effects of fact-oriented versus problem-oriented acquisition. Memory & Cognition, 16(2), 167–175. https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03213486.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ash, I. K., Jee, B., & Wiley, J. (2012). Investigating insight as sudden learning. The Journal of Problem Solving, 4(2), 150–176. https://doi.org/10.7771/1932-6246.1123.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ash, I. K., & Wiley, J. (2008). Hindsight bias in insight and mathematical problem solving: Evidence of different reconstruction mechanisms for metacognitive versus situational judgments. Memory & Cognition, 36(4), 822–837. https://doi.org/10.3758/MC.36.4.822.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Auble, P. M., & Franks, J. J. (1978). The effects of effort toward comprehension on recall. Memory & Cognition, 6(1), 20–25.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Auble, P. M., Franks, J. J., & Soraci, S. A. (1979). Effort toward comprehension: Elaboration or “aha!”? Memory & Cognition, 7(6), 426–434.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Becker, M., & Cabeza, R. (2022). Neuronal mechanism for the insight memory effect. Talk presented at the 64th Conference of Experimental Psychologists (TeaP), Cologne.Google Scholar
Becker, M., Kühn, S., & Sommer, T. (2021). Verbal insight revisited: Dissociable neurocognitive processes underlying solutions accompanied by an AHA! experience with and without prior restructuring. Journal of Cognitive Psychology, 33(6/7), 659–684. https://doi.org/10.1080/20445911.2020.1819297.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bilalić, M., Graf, M., Vaci, N., & Danek, A. H. (2021). The temporal dynamics of insight problem solving – restructuring might not always be sudden. Thinking & Reasoning, 27(1), 1–37. https://doi.org/10.1080/13546783.2019.1705912.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bowden, E. M., Jung-Beeman, M., Fleck, J. I., & Kounios, J. (2005). New approaches to demystifying insight. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 9(7), 322–328. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2005.05.012.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Buyer, L. S., & Dominowski, R. L. (1989). Retention of solutions: It is better to give than to receive. The American Journal of Psychology, 102(3), 353–363.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Clos, M., Sommer, T., Schneider, S. L., & Rose, M. (2018). Enhanced transformation of incidentally learned knowledge into explicit memory by dopaminergic modulation. PLoS ONE, 13(6), e0199013. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0199013.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Craik, F. I. M., & Lockhart, R. S. (1972). Levels of processing: A framework for memory research. Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 11(6), 671–684. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-5371(72)80001-X.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cui, C., Zhang, K., Du, X., Sun, X., & Luo, J. (2021). Event-related potentials support the mnemonic effect of spontaneous insight solution. Psychological Research, 85(7), 2518–2529. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00426-020-01421-1.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cushen, P. J., & Wiley, J. (2012). Cues to solution, restructuring patterns, and reports of insight in creative problem solving. Consciousness and Cognition, 21(3), 1166–1175. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.concog.2012.03.013.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Danek, A. H. (2018). Magic tricks, sudden restructuring and the Aha! experience: A new model of non-monotonic problem solving. In Vallée-Tourangeau, F. (Ed.), Insight: On the origins of new ideas (pp. 51–78). Routledge.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Danek, A. H. (2024). The phenomenology of insight: The Aha! experience. In Ball, L. J. & Vallée-Tourangeau, F. (Eds.), Routledge international handbook of creative cognition (pp. 308–331). Routledge.Google Scholar
Danek, A. H., & Flanagin, V. L. (2019). Cognitive conflict and restructuring: The neural basis of two core components of insight. AIMS Neuroscience, 6(2), 60–84. https://doi.org/10.3934/Neuroscience.2019.2.60.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Danek, A. H., Fraps, T., von Müller, A., Grothe, B., & Öllinger, M. (2013). Aha! experiences leave a mark: Facilitated recall of insight solutions. Psychological Research, 77(5), 659–669. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00426-012-0454-8.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Danek, A. H., Fraps, T., von Müller, A., Grothe, B., & Öllinger, M. (2014). It’s a kind of magic – what self-reports can reveal about the phenomenology of insight problem solving. Frontiers in Psychology, 5, 1408. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2014.01408.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Danek, A. H., & Wiley, J. (2017). What about false insights? Deconstructing the Aha! experience along its multiple dimensions for correct and incorrect solutions separately. Frontiers in Psychology, 7, 2077. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.02077CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Danek, A. H., & Wiley, J. (2020). What causes the insight memory advantage? Cognition, 205, 104411. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2020.104411.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Danek, A. H., Williams, J., & Wiley, J. (2020). Closing the gap: Connecting sudden representational change to the subjective Aha! experience in insightful problem solving. Psychological Research, 84, 111–119. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00426-018-0977-8.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ding, K., Chen, Q., Yang, W., et al. (2021). Recognizing ideas generated in a creative thinking task: Effect of the subjective novelty. Current Psychology, 42, 529–541. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-020-01342-7.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dominowski, R. L., & Buyer, L. S. (2000). Retention of problem solutions: The re-solution effect. The American Journal of Psychology, 113(2), 249–274.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ellis, J. J., Glaholt, M. G., & Reingold, E. M. (2011). Eye movements reveal solution knowledge prior to insight. Consciousness and Cognition, 20(3), 768–776. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.concog.2010.12.007.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gick, M. L., & Lockhart, R. S. (1995). Cognitive and affective components of insight. In Sternberg, R. J. & Davidson, J. E. (Eds.), The nature of insight (pp. 197–228). MIT Press.Google Scholar
Hamann, S. B., Ely, T. D., Grafton, S. T., & Kilts, C. D. (1999). Amygdala activity related to enhanced memory for pleasant and aversive stimuli. Nature Neuroscience, 2(3), 289–293. https://doi.org/10.1038/6404.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hedne, M. R., Norman, E., & Metcalfe, J. (2016). Intuitive feelings of warmth and confidence in insight and noninsight problem solving of magic tricks. Frontiers in Psychology, 7, 1314. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01314.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Jacoby, L. L. (1978). On interpreting the effects of repetition: Solving a problem versus remembering a solution. Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 17(6), 649–667.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jung-Beeman, M., Bowden, E. M., Haberman, J., et al. (2004). Neural activity when people solve verbal problems with insight. PLoS Biology, 2(4), 500–510. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.0020097.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Katona, G. (1940). Organizing and memorizing: Studies in the psychology of learning and teaching. Columbia University Press.Google Scholar
Kensinger, E. A. (2007). Negative emotion enhances memory accuracy: Behavioral and neuroimaging evidence. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 16(4), 213–218.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kizilirmak, J. M., & Becker, M. (2024). A cognitive neuroscience perspective on insight as a memory process: Encoding the solution. In Ball, L. J. & Valleé-Tourangeau, F. (Eds.), Routledge international handbook of creative cognition (pp. 85–102). Routledge.Google Scholar
Kizilirmak, J. M., Gallisch, N., Schott, B. H., & Folta-Schoofs, K. (2021). Insight is not always the same: Differences between true, false, and induced insights in the matchstick arithmetic task. Journal of Cognitive Psychology, 33(6/7), 700–717. https://doi.org/10.1080/20445911.2021.1912049.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kizilirmak, J. M., Galvao Gomes da Silva, J., Imamoglu, F., & Richardson-Klavehn, A. (2016). Generation and the subjective feeling of “aha!” are independently related to learning from insight. Psychological Research, 80(6), 1059–1074. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00426-015-0697-2.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kizilirmak, J. M., Schott, B. H., Thuerich, H., et al. (2019). Learning of novel semantic relationships via sudden comprehension is associated with a hippocampus-independent network. Consciousness and Cognition, 69, 113–132. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.concog.2019.01.005.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kizilirmak, J. M., Thuerich, H., Folta-Schoofs, K., Schott, B. H., & Richardson-Klavehn, A. (2016). Neural correlates of learning from induced insight: A case for reward-based episodic encoding. Frontiers in Psychology, 7, 1693. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01693.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kizilirmak, J. M., Wiegmann, B., & Richardson-Klavehn, A. (2016). Problem solving as an encoding task: A special case of the generation effect. The Journal of Problem Solving, 9(1), 59–76. https://doi.org/10.7771/1932-6246.1182.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Köhler, W. (1921). Intelligenzprüfungen am Menschenaffen. Springer.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kounios, J., & Beeman, M. (2014). The cognitive neuroscience of insight. Annual Review of Psychology, 65(1), 71–93. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-psych-010213-115154.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kroneisen, M., & Erdfelder, E. (2011). On the plasticity of the survival processing effect. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 37(6), 1553–1562. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0024493.Google ScholarPubMed
Lazer, D. M. J., Baum, M. A., Benkler, Y., et al. (2018). The science of fake news. Science, 359(6380), 1094–1096. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aao2998.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lewandowsky, S., Ecker, U. K. H., Seifert, C. M., Schwarz, N., & Cook, J. (2012). Misinformation and its correction: Continued influence and successful debiasing. Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 13(3), 106–131. https://doi.org/10.1177/1529100612451018.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lockhart, R. S., Lamon, M., & Gick, M. L. (1988). Conceptual transfer in simple insight problems. Memory & Cognition, 16(1), 36–44.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ludmer, R., Dudai, Y., & Rubin, N. (2011). Uncovering camouflage: Amygdala activation predicts long-term memory of induced perceptual insight. Neuron, 69(5), 1002–1014. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2011.02.013.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Luo, J., & Knoblich, G. (2007). Studying insight problem solving with neuroscientific methods. Methods, 42(1), 77–86. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ymeth.2006.12.005.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
McGaugh, J. L. (2004). The amygdala modulates the consolidation of memories of emotionally arousing experiences. Annual Review of Neuroscience, 27(1), 1–28. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.neuro.27.070203.144157.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Moss, J., Kotovsky, K., & Cagan, J. (2007). The influence of open goals on the acquisition of problem-relevant information. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 33(5), 876–891. https://doi.org/10.1037/0278-7393.33.5.876.Google ScholarPubMed
Needham, D. R., & Begg, I. M. (1991). Problem-oriented training promotes spontaneous analogical transfer: Memory-oriented training promotes memory for training. Memory & Cognition, 19(6), 543–557. https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03197150.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Oh, Y., Chesebrough, C., Erickson, B., Zhang, F., & Kounios, J. (2020). An insight-related neural reward signal. NeuroImage, 214, 116757. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroimage.2020.116757.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ohlsson, S. (1984). Restructuring revisited: II. An information processing theory of restructuring and insight. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 25, 117–129. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9450.1984.tb01005.x.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Osgood, C. E. (1953). Method and theory in experimental psychology. Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Phelps, E. A., & LeDoux, J. E. (2005). Contributions of the amygdala to emotion processing: From animal models to human behavior. Neuron, 48(2), 175–187. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2005.09.025.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ripollés, P., Marco-Pallarés, J., Alicart, H., et al. (2016). Intrinsic monitoring of learning success facilitates memory encoding via the activation of the SN/VTA-Hippocampal loop. ELife, 5, e17441. https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.17441.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Rothmaler, K., Nigbur, R., & Ivanova, G. (2017). New insights into insight: Neurophysiological correlates of the difference between the intrinsic “aha” and the extrinsic “oh yes” moment. Neuropsychologia, 95, 204–214. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2016.12.017.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Salvi, C., Leiker, E. K., Baricca, B., et al. (2021). The effect of dopaminergic replacement therapy on creative thinking and insight problem-solving in Parkinson’s Disease patients. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 646448. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.646448.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sarasso, P., Perna, P., Barbieri, P., et al. (2021). Memorisation and implicit perceptual learning are enhanced for preferred musical intervals and chords. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 28(5), 1623–1637. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13423-021-01922-z.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Scheerer, M. (1963). Problem-solving. Scientific American, 208(4), 118–128.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Schwarz, N., Newman, E., & Leach, W. (2016). Making the truth stick & the myths fade: Lessons from cognitive psychology. Behavioral Science & Policy, 2(1), 85–95. https://doi.org/10.1353/bsp.2016.0009.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Seifert, C. M., Meyer, D. E., Davidson, N., Patalano, A. L., & Yaniv, I. (1995). Demystification of cognitive insight: Opportunistic assimilation and the prepared-mind perspective. In Sternberg, R. J. & Davidson, J. E. (Eds.), The nature of insight (pp. 65–124). MIT Press.Google Scholar
Shen, W., Zhao, Y., Hommel, B., et al. (2019). The impact of spontaneous and induced mood states on problem solving and memory. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 32, 66–74. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2019.03.002.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Spiridonov, V., Loginov, N., & Ardislamov, V. (2021). Dissociation between the subjective experience of insight and performance in the CRA paradigm. Journal of Cognitive Psychology, 33(6/7), 685–699. https://doi.org/10.1080/20445911.2021.1900198.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Subramaniam, K., Kounios, J., Parrish, T. B., & Jung-Beeman, M. (2009). A brain mechanism for facilitation of insight by positive affect. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 21(3), 415–432. https://doi.org/10.1162/jocn.2009.21057.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Thagard, P., & Stewart, T. C. (2011). The Aha! experience: Creativity through emergent binding in neural networks. Cognitive Science, 35(1), 1–33. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1551-6709.2010.01142.x.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Tik, M., Sladky, R., Di Bernardi Luft, C., et al. (2018). Ultra-high-field fMRI insights on insight: Neural correlates of the Aha!-moment. Human Brain Mapping, 39(8), 3241–3252. https://doi.org/10.1002/hbm.24073.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Topolinski, S., & Reber, R. (2010). Gaining insight into the “aha” experience. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 19(6), 402–405. https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721410388803.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Webb, M. E., Cropper, S. J., & Little, D. R. (2019). “Aha!” is stronger when preceded by a “huh?”: Presentation of a solution affects ratings of aha experience conditional on accuracy. Thinking & Reasoning, 25(3), 324–364. https://doi.org/10.1080/13546783.2018.1523807.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Webb, M. E., Little, D. R., & Cropper, S. J. (2016). Insight is not in the problem: Investigating insight in problem solving across task types. Frontiers in Psychology, 7, 1424. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01424.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wertheimer, M. (1925). Über Schlussprozesse im produktiven Denken. In Wertheimer, M. (Ed.), Drei Abhandlungen zur Gestalttheorie (pp. 164–184). Verlag der Philosophischen Akademie.Google Scholar
Wertheimer, M. (1945). Productive thinking. Harper.Google Scholar
Wills, T. W., Soraci, S. A., Chechile, R. A., & Taylor, A. H. (2000). “Aha” effects in the generation of pictures. Memory & Cognition, 28(6), 939–948.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Woodworth, R. S., & Schlosberg, H. (1954). Experimental psychology. Holt.Google Scholar

Accessibility standard: Unknown

Accessibility compliance for the PDF of this book is currently unknown and may be updated in the future.

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure no-reply@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×