Remote Associates Task¶
HED Task ID: hedtsk_remote_associates
Also known as: Remote Associates Test, RAT, Remote Associates
Three cue words linked to a single fourth word; solution rate and solution time index semantic search and insight.
Description¶
The Remote Associates Test measures creative thinking through convergent semantic association. On each trial, participants are given three seemingly unrelated words (e.g., “cottage,” “Swiss,” “cake”) and must find a single word that connects all three (answer: “cheese”). The task requires searching semantic memory broadly, suppressing dominant but incorrect associations, and recognizing the linking concept. RAT performance correlates with measures of creativity, insight problem-solving, and divergent thinking. The task has also been used to study the “Aha!” moment—the subjective experience of sudden insight—and its neural correlates in the right anterior superior temporal gyrus.
Inclusion test¶
Procedure |
Three seemingly unrelated words are presented (e.g., PINE, CRAB, SAUCE); participants find a single word that forms a compound or common phrase with each (APPLE). |
Manipulation |
Item difficulty (associative strength of solution to each cue); number of items; time limit. |
Measurement |
Number correct; RT to solution; solution probability as a function of associative strength. |
Variations¶
Variation |
Description |
Justification |
|---|---|---|
Standard RAT (Mednick) |
30-item test with three cue words per item; timed at 15-40 seconds per item. |
Canonical three-word compound remote associate task |
Compound RAT (CRAT) |
Solutions form compound words or phrases with each cue (e.g., “cottage cheese,” “Swiss cheese,” “cheesecake”). |
Compound word solutions instead of single words; different solution structure |
Timed vs. Untimed RAT |
Strict time limits vs. self-paced to study incubation effects. |
Time pressure changes solving strategy |
RAT with Hint/Priming |
Subliminal or suprathreshold presentation of the answer or related words. |
Semantic prime precedes problem; changes solution accessibility |
Cognitive processes¶
This task engages the following cognitive processes:
Key references¶
{‘authors’: ‘Mednick, S.’, ‘year’: 1962, ‘title’: ‘The associative basis of the creative process.’, ‘venue’: ‘Psychological Review’, ‘venue_type’: ‘journal’, ‘journal’: ‘Psychological Review’, ‘volume’: ‘69’, ‘issue’: ‘3’, ‘pages’: ‘220-232’, ‘doi’: ‘10.1037/h0048850’, ‘openalex_id’: None, ‘pmid’: None, ‘citation_string’: ‘Mednick, S. A. (1962). The associative basis of the creative process. Psychological Review, 69(3), 220–232.’, ‘url’: ‘https://doi.org/10.1037/h0048850’, ‘source’: ‘crossref’, ‘confidence’: ‘high’, ‘verified_on’: ‘2026-04-20’}
{‘authors’: ‘Bowden, E. M., & Jung-Beeman, M.’, ‘year’: 2003, ‘title’: ‘Aha! Insight experience correlates with solution activation in the right hemisphere’, ‘venue’: ‘Psychonomic Bulletin & Review’, ‘venue_type’: ‘journal’, ‘journal’: ‘Psychonomic Bulletin & Review’, ‘volume’: ‘10’, ‘issue’: ‘3’, ‘pages’: ‘730-737’, ‘doi’: ‘10.3758/bf03196539’, ‘openalex_id’: None, ‘pmid’: None, ‘citation_string’: ‘Bowden, E. M., & Jung-Beeman, M. (2003). Aha! Insight experience correlates with solution activation in the right hemisphere. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 10(3), 730–737.’, ‘url’: ‘https://doi.org/10.3758/bf03196539’, ‘source’: ‘crossref’, ‘confidence’: ‘high’, ‘verified_on’: ‘2026-04-20’}
{‘authors’: ‘Jung-Beeman, M., Bowden, E. M., Haberman, J., Frymiare, J. L., Arambel-Liu, S., Greenblatt, R., Reber, P. J., & Kounios, J.’, ‘year’: 2004, ‘title’: ‘Neural Activity When People Solve Verbal Problems with Insight’, ‘venue’: ‘PLoS Biology’, ‘venue_type’: ‘journal’, ‘journal’: ‘PLoS Biology’, ‘volume’: ‘2’, ‘issue’: ‘4’, ‘pages’: ‘e97’, ‘doi’: ‘10.1371/journal.pbio.0020097’, ‘openalex_id’: None, ‘pmid’: None, ‘citation_string’: ‘Jung-Beeman, M., Bowden, E. M., Haberman, J., Frymiare, J. L., Arambel-Liu, S., Greenblatt, R., … & Kounios, J. (2004). Neural activity when people solve verbal problems with insight. PLoS Biology, 2(4), e97.’, ‘url’: ‘https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.0020097’, ‘source’: ‘crossref’, ‘confidence’: ‘high’, ‘verified_on’: ‘2026-04-20’}
Recent references¶
{‘authors’: ‘Beaty, R. E., Silvia, P. J., Nusbaum, E. C., Jauk, E., & Benedek, M.’, ‘year’: 2014, ‘title’: ‘The roles of associative and executive processes in creative cognition’, ‘venue’: ‘Memory & Cognition’, ‘venue_type’: ‘journal’, ‘journal’: ‘Memory & Cognition’, ‘volume’: ‘42’, ‘issue’: ‘7’, ‘pages’: ‘1186-1197’, ‘doi’: ‘10.3758/s13421-014-0428-8’, ‘openalex_id’: None, ‘pmid’: None, ‘citation_string’: ‘Beaty, R. E., Silvia, P. J., Nusbaum, E. C., Jauk, E., & Benedek, M. (2014). The roles of associative and executive processes in creative cognition. Memory & Cognition, 42(7), 1186–1197.’, ‘url’: ‘https://doi.org/10.3758/s13421-014-0428-8’, ‘source’: ‘crossref’, ‘confidence’: ‘high’, ‘verified_on’: ‘2026-04-20’}
{‘authors’: ‘Salvi, C., Bricolo, E., Kounios, J., Bowden, E., & Beeman, M.’, ‘year’: 2016, ‘title’: ‘Insight solutions are correct more often than analytic solutions’, ‘venue’: ‘Thinking & Reasoning’, ‘venue_type’: ‘journal’, ‘journal’: ‘Thinking & Reasoning’, ‘volume’: ‘22’, ‘issue’: ‘4’, ‘pages’: ‘443-460’, ‘doi’: ‘10.1080/13546783.2016.1141798’, ‘openalex_id’: None, ‘pmid’: None, ‘citation_string’: ‘Salvi, C., Bricolo, E., Kounios, J., Bowden, E., & Beeman, M. (2016). Insight solutions are correct more often than analytic solutions. Thinking & Reasoning, 22(4), 443–460.’, ‘url’: ‘https://doi.org/10.1080/13546783.2016.1141798’, ‘source’: ‘crossref’, ‘confidence’: ‘high’, ‘verified_on’: ‘2026-04-20’}
{‘authors’: ‘Kounios, J., & Beeman, M.’, ‘year’: 2014, ‘title’: ‘The Cognitive Neuroscience of Insight’, ‘venue’: ‘Annual Review of Psychology’, ‘venue_type’: ‘journal’, ‘journal’: ‘Annual Review of Psychology’, ‘volume’: ‘65’, ‘issue’: ‘1’, ‘pages’: ‘71-93’, ‘doi’: ‘10.1146/annurev-psych-010213-115154’, ‘openalex_id’: None, ‘pmid’: None, ‘citation_string’: ‘Kounios, J., & Beeman, M. (2014). The cognitive neuroscience of insight. Annual Review of Psychology, 65, 71–93.’, ‘url’: ‘https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-psych-010213-115154’, ‘source’: ‘crossref’, ‘confidence’: ‘high’, ‘verified_on’: ‘2026-04-20’}
{‘authors’: ‘Olteţeanu, A., & Falomir, Z.’, ‘year’: 2015, ‘title’: ‘comRAT-C: A computational compound Remote Associates Test solver based on language data and its comparison to human performance’, ‘venue’: ‘Pattern Recognition Letters’, ‘venue_type’: ‘journal’, ‘journal’: ‘Pattern Recognition Letters’, ‘volume’: ‘67’, ‘issue’: None, ‘pages’: ‘81-90’, ‘doi’: ‘10.1016/j.patrec.2015.05.015’, ‘openalex_id’: None, ‘pmid’: None, ‘citation_string’: ‘Olteteanu, A. M., & Falomir, Z. (2015). comRAT-C: A computational compound Remote Associates Test solver based on language data and its comparison to human performance. Pattern Recognition Letters, 67, 81–90.’, ‘url’: ‘https://doi.org/10.1016/j.patrec.2015.05.015’, ‘source’: ‘crossref’, ‘confidence’: ‘high’, ‘verified_on’: ‘2026-04-20’}