Insight

Insight means suddenly understanding the answer to a problem. It often feels like an “Aha!” moment. You may think about a problem for some time without finding the answer.

Then, suddenly, you see the connection and understand what to do. For example, you cannot solve a puzzle for several minutes. Suddenly, you notice how the pieces fit together and say, “Oh, now I understand!”

The psychologist Wolfgang Köhler studied insight through experiments with chimpanzees. In one experiment, a chimpanzee used sticks to reach food that was out of reach.

Köhler believed the chimpanzee did not solve the problem by slowly trying random actions. It understood the relationship between the sticks and the food and then found the solution. This showed that problem-solving can sometimes happen through sudden understanding.