An Exploratory Study of Infant Problem Solving in Natural Environments* Bruce B. Henderson Western Carolina University Louella Dias Pennsylvania State University zyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcbaZYXWVUTSRQPONMLKJIHGFED This study was designed to apply Charlesworth’s ethological approach to the study of problem solving to infant behavior. A problem is defined as a block or interruption in ongoing activity that requires adaptation rather than a habitual, reflexive response. Approximately 75 hours of observations were narratively recorded from the behavior of four infants, 4-18 months of age, in and around their homes. From these obser- vations, 1274 problems were identified and categorized using Charlesworth’s schema. The results of the observations indicated that infants encountered 0.299 problems per minute on the average (range, 0.266-0.409). Most blocks were physical (39%) or social (50%), as were the infants’ responses to the blocks. About two thirds of the blocks were removed and almost all were removed by the child by direct action or by com- pliance with a social demand. Original ongoing behavior was resumed only 25% of the time. Infants encountered increasingly more social blocks and fewer physical zyxwvutsrqponmlkji b lo c ks with age. They were increasingly likely with age to remove blocks themselves. Context effects on infant problem solving (adult presence, time of day, location) were few. The results are discussed in terms of the advantages and disadvantages of this approach in studying infant adaptation. Holly is in the backyard of her house with her father. She toddles over to the stairs to the deck porch and crawls to the top stair. She reaches over, grasps the chain to the baby swing that is sitting on the deck and pulls it toward her. The chain gets caught on a chair. Holly hesitates for a moment, Received January 16, 1986; revised January 27, 1987. Address reprint requests to: Bruce B. Henderson, Department of Psychology, Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, NC 28723. * This article is based on a poster session presented at the meeting of the Society for Research in Child Development at Toronto, April 1985. We would like to thank A. J., Bobby, Heidi, and Michael for their naturalistic cooperation. We would also like to thank the parents who let us come into their homes to watch and then ignored us. Finally, we thank William Charlesworth for encouraging this project during its infancy. Ethology and Sociobiology 8: 205-213 (1987) 0 Elsevier Science Publishing Co., Inc., 1987 52 Vanderbilt Ave., New York, New York 10017 0162-3905/87/$03.00