Kluwe, Rainer. (1987). Executive Decisions and Regulation of Problem Solving Behavior.

Kluwe, Rainer. (1987). Executive Decisions and Regulation of Problem Solving Behavior. In F. E. Weinert & R. Kluwe (Eds.), Metacognition, motivation, and understanding (pp. 31-64). Hillsdale, N.J.: L. Erlbaum Associates.

"There is no doubt that metacognition has a long history in cognitive psychology, especially in connection with assumptions concerning the function of the executive component in information processing system (Neisser, 1967; Reitman, 1965)." (p. 32)

"The attribution of metacognitive skills to the executive component of information processing system, is important in establishing the linkage between cognitive developmental research and cognitive psychology." (p. 33)

Thank you!  I was starting to think that my low-latent-inhibition head was building up delusions on the linkage between the two...

"... effortful cognitive processes, unlike automated processes, may vary in the efficiency of their organization and execution." (p. 34)

The process of knowledge retrieval is relatively effortless and can almost be automatic, which might be out-of-whack in me.  Therefore, the need to engage in the effortful antipsychotic cognitive processes... though not always efficient and/or effective.

"... in order to maintain cognitive activity, which is subject to emotionally and motivationally determined variation, the human information processing system needs executive decision." (p. 34)

Sounds like the author believed that the executive decision might be able to overpower the impact of emotion.

"Executive decisions are based, in part, on the availability of cognitive knowledge." (P.34)

You won't be able to learn to catch your own psychotic symptoms (e.g., hallucinations, delusions) until you have enough knowledge about them.

"Executive decisions aim at the acquisition of information about own ongoing cognitive activity and about the present state of own cognitive endeavor, as well as the transformation or maintenance of one's own cognitive ability and states." (p. 35)

Monitor and control

Hypothetical executive decisions have three features

• 1. determine how to solve a problem through building the selection, organization, and termination of cognitive processes.
• 2. applied to avoid costs (e.g., risk states, failure)
• 3. not always necessary

"Executive decisions may then be considered as stored rules for the control and regulation of cognitive activities during problem solving." (p. 35)

Speaking of production rules here... like...

If like delusion (subroutine) [condition]       
(Then apply suitable workaround (subroutine)
Else abort) [action]

The connections between states and actions for control and regulation are "acquired." (P.36)

Executive control for monitoring purposes: (P. 36-41)

• Classification: Can what you know help improving the monitoring of your own cognitive activity?  As of 1987, no study results indicated this connection

Looking at what's going on in the head and tell what the heck is going on, "Am I being delusional?"  

• Checking: Training on checking strategies helps and the transfer of these strategies to other situations were observed.  Training skills without feedback is not as useful as providing both.

How am I doing in negating/neutralizing the effects of the symptoms?

• Evaluation: The difference between checking and evaluation is in the "evaluation criteria" department.  Though... what are these criteria?

I guess, I did a mean job though not perfect in evaluating my mental state on Feb. 10th, 2008... 4 days before my institutionalization. 8-O lol sigh

• Anticipation/prediction: "Prediction of cognitive states and cognitive activities provides information about: the possible alternative options for problem solving; the possible sequences of solution steps; and the possible outcomes."

Guess I am psychic... 100% accuracy in the prediction that I will still be delusional tomorrow.  The anticipation of my not being able to escape the delusion etc... what to do (e.g., tactics) and possible outcomes-->be conservative to minimize risk.

"Executive regulation refers to decisions about the organization, effort, amount, course, and direction of one's own cognitive activity. Regulatory decisions do not necessarily imply a modification of the cognitive activity, they may also result in the maintenance and continuation of a particular cognitive enterprise." (p. 41)

Four of the hypothetical processes discussed by the author: (P. 41-46)

• Regulation of processing capacity: Bank it mostly if not all on risk management
• Regulation of what is processed
• Regulation of processing intensity
• Regulation of speed of information processing: In a world pushing speed (I do like terabit networks), slow the cognitive processing down since I am not rushing anywhere in my imaginary world... 8-O Something, thank God, children acquire first.  

"The increase of time and frequency of solution activities alone is not a sufficient predictor of performance.  It is assumed that one must search for certain patterns of regulatory activities that are associated with success or failure." (p. 61)

Psychotics have to figure out what works for them.  Not Swann's way, not my way... we all need to find our own way... unfortunately... so I suspect... Like what they say... "you can't pretend the outcome without going through the motions."