Positive and negative biasing sets: The effects of prior experience on research performance

The effect of prior experience on success in solving discrete problems was studied by comparing the behavior of eight laboratories in two R and D proposal competitions. The findings show that prior experience does not, by itself, influence the likelihood of achieving a correct solution. If the prior experience is limited to a technique which is appropriate to the present problem, successful solution is almost certain. But prior experience with a technique which is not appropriate usually results in an unsuccessful solution. In the latter case, if more than one alternative approach is considered the probability of achieving a successful solution is increased from 0 to 0.5.