Assessment of collaborative problem-solving processes

This chapter presents a framework for understanding collaborative problem solving, including both the cognitive and social perspectives, and identifies the construct’s theoretical underpinnings, structure and elements. It describes the circumstances under which collaborative problem solving might best be used, with consequences for the design of tasks to assess the component skills. It highlights the characteristics of problemsolving tasks, interdependence between problem solvers and the asymmetry of stimulus and response, through a focus on task design. The chapter then outlines approaches to measuring collaborative problem solving and illustrate them with examples.