Predictive Power of Lateral, Divergent, Computational and Metacognitive Thinking Levels of Pre-Service Teachers on Their Cognitive Flexibility Levels

Authors : Selda Özer, Fatma Başarır

Pages : 106-139

Doi:10.14812/cuefd.1470734

View : 47 | Download : 38

Publication Date : 2025-04-30

Article Type : Research Paper

Abstract :The aim of this study is to determine the effect of pre-service teachers’ lateral, divergent, computational, and metacognitive thinking levels on their cognitive flexibility, as well as the predictive power of these thinking skills on their cognitive flexibility. This research is a quantitative study conducted in a correlational survey model. The participants of the study consisted of 330 pre-service teachers studying at a state university in Türkiye. “Lateral Thinking Disposition Scale”, “Divergent Thinking Self-Assessment Scale”, “Computational Thinking Scales”, “Metacognitive Strategies Scale” and “Cognitive Flexibility Inventory” were used as data collection tools. AMOS 24 was utilized to examine Confirmatory Factor Analysis of each scale, and SPSS 24 was used for correlation and multiple linear regression analyses. The findings indicated moderate and low statistically significant relationships between variables. It was also revealed that divergent, computational, lateral and metacognitive thinking all predicted cognitive flexibility significantly and all the predictors together explained 33% of cognitive flexibility. The research findings were deliberated in relation to the literature and suggestions were made for teacher educators, curriculum developers and researchers studying on cognitive flexibility and higher-order thinking skills.
Keywords : Üst Düzey Düşünme Becerileri, Yanal Düşünme, Iraksak düşünme, Bilgi işlemsel Düşünme, Metabilişsel Düşünme, Bilişsel Esneklik, Öğretmen Adayları.