Which experimental task has been used to study how children apply rules to solve problems?

The balance scale problem has been widely used in developmental psychology to investigate how children apply rules and reasoning to solve problems. In this task, children are presented with a balance scale and various weights that can be placed on either side. The goal is to determine how children reason about the balance of weights and the effects of mass and distance on the scale's balance.

Research demonstrates that children use different cognitive strategies at different developmental stages. Younger children may rely on simple rules (such as the number of weights) without understanding the underlying principles of balance, while older children begin to grasp more complex concepts of weight and leverage. This task invites them to think about physical properties and abstract rules, showcasing their problem-solving abilities and cognitive development in action.

Other options, while useful in their contexts, do not specifically target the application of rules in the same way. Sorting tasks assess categorization skills; puzzle tasks focus more on spatial reasoning and manipulation; and memory recall tasks are centered around retrieval of previously learned information rather than applying rules to derive solutions. Thus, the balance scale problem is uniquely suited to understanding how children develop and utilize cognitive rules in problem-solving scenarios.