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Four experiments tested the forgetting fixation hypothesis of incubation effects, comparing continuous vs. alternating generation of exemplars from three different types of categories. In two experiments, participants who listed as many members as possible from two different categories produced more responses, and more novel responses, when they alternated back and forth between the two categories, as compared to continuous uninterrupted listing from each of the two categories. This incubation effect was not found in Experiment 1, when participants were given taxonomic categories (birds and clothing) for the generation task, but was found in Experiment 2 with sense impression categories (cold things and heavy things), and in Experiment 3 with ad hoc categories (equipment you take camping and fattening foods). A similar incubation effect was observed in Experiment 4 when a non-verbal task was given between category generation tasks, but only for flexibly defined categories. The results suggest that forgetting from one alternating listing period to the next in the form of altering category cue representations was consistent with the observed incubation effects. These alternating incubation effects have implications for understanding cognitive processes that underlie creative cognition.

Although various Idea Generation (IG) methods exist for conceptual design, the ideation process is still hardly understood. There is a need for a Design Ideation Model that explains the variables and processes occurring during IG. Cognitive Science provides models and theories, but these are usually derived from simple tasks or problems. On the other hand, Design Research simulates real world design better, but experimentation at the design level is time consuming and is difficult to isolate due to interactions of the variables involved. This paper introduces an approach for the alignment of experiments at the design level with lab experiments in cognitive psychology. Two key concepts that make this alignment possible are: ideation components (mechanisms believed to promote IG) recognized in Design Research and Cognitive Science, and uniform measures. The long-term objective of this research is the creation of a Design Ideation Model; this will require the testing and modeling of several of these ideation components. This paper presents results from Design and Lab Experiments for a selected component: incubation. Results are discussed and their significance explained in the context of the Design Ideation Model. This study found that, based on the correlation at both the Lab and Design Experiments, incubation had a positive impact on Design Ideation. Further, the alignment approach followed proved to be appropriate for the individual modeling of ideation components.

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Two lexical decision semantic priming experiments examined when, in the course of reading a joke, the initial and the intended meanings are primed; whether the meanings overlap in time; and what happens to the initial reading when the punchline is encountered. In Experiment 1, probes related to the first activated sense (S1) vs. the second sense (S2), or true meaning, were presented at each of three temporal sites for visually displayed joke tests: shortly after joke onset, at an intermediary position, and at punchline offset, whereas in Experiment 2, probes were presented at joke offset following prolonged viewing. The results from Experiment 1 showed S1 priming effects at the initial and intermediary time point. Priming for S2 also emerged at the intermediary time point and persisted at the final time point. In Experiment 2, the priming effect at joke offset was reliable only for S2. The results are taken to support a concurrent meaning activation view [in line with Attardo, Humor 10 (1997) 395] at incongruity detection, and a selective activation view [in line with Giora, Journal of Pragmatics 16 (1991) 465] at incongruity resolution. #