THE PROBLEM-SOLVING PROCESS
by Jeffrey Leaf
Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology
When confronted with a problem, successful
people in any field follow a similar process to find an effective solution.
This process differs from the Scientific Method in a very basic
way. The Scientific Method establishes a single hypothesis for the
situation. Hypotheses proofs provide a yes-or-no answer. The Problem-Solving
Process, however, avoids any initial hypothesis. The final result is one
of many possible solutions to the problem.
DEFINE THE PROBLEM
Determine what must the solution do. Be
specific and detailed. Be careful of word selection. General terms allow
the imagination the widest field of view. Specific verbs can prejudiced
thinking and eliminate better solutions.
If you are asked to get people from
one side of a river to the other, you could define the problem as building
a bridge or you could define the problem as moving people, which
brings in more possible solutions as boats, a tunnel, helicopters, travel
upstream and ford at a shallow place, etc.
DETERMINE CONSTRAINTS
Determine what gets in the way of the solution.
Identify restrictions which limit the possible solutions. Some possible
constraints are:
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Materials.
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Space.
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Time.
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People.
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Cost.
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Other special conditions. What else limits the endless possibilities of
solutions? (i.e. The device must be able to be used by people with only
one arm.)
GATHER DATA
There are many sources of available information.
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Review personal experience.
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Review related scientific data and principles.
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Review applicable technology.
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Search the library and available literature.
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Consult experts.
These are just a few places to look. Every
problem provides new challenges and opportunities to find new solutions.
BRAINSTORM
The Brainstorming activity is an exercise
in creativity.
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Make no judgements of any ideas during Brainstorming.
There are two sides to the brain. One is strong in creativity, the other
is strong in judgement and analysis. Lock the Judge in the closet during
Brainstorming
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The wilder the idea the better. Wild ideas
can lead to practical solutions.How many ways can you find to peel
a banana? Play sexy music>music is sound> ultrasound.
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Record ideas. Subsequent ideas may feed off
of an earlier idea and there must be a record to go back to.
REMEMBER! There are no bad ideas. Some
will be less effective than others, but every idea is to be respected because
it may be the basis for the final solution.
ANALYZE
Now you can let the Judge out of the closet.
Evaluate each brainstorming idea. Judge the probability of success of each
idea. Prioritize ideas, if needed. Select the idea(s) to pursue.
DEVELOP
Design the solution.
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Sketch the ideas.
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Draw the design.
Test ideas as required.
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Sketch the test apparatus.
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Build the test set-up.
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Run the test.
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Record test results.
Evaluate the results.
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Modify the design based on test results.
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Complete the design.
BUILD
Build the solution.
TEST
Try it. Determine if the solution works
as planned.
EVALUATE
Does the solution solve the problem? If
the answer is YES, does the solution meet the constraints of the
problem?
If the answer is NO to either question,
return to the beginning. Determine if the problem is defined correctly?
If the answer is YES, determine if the constraints are defined accurately?
If not, redefine them.
Developed by Jeffrey Leaf
Last Updated 12/2/98