principles of creative problem solving

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Principles of Creative Problem Solving

Dr. Michael McNamara

 Creativity as: ◦ Type 2 thinking

(executive attention network: analytic, rational, slow)

◦ Type 1 thinking (default network: fast, spontaneous, inward)

 Dual Process theory ◦ Creativity as a

combination of both type 2 and 1

 Purpose of the Unit: ◦ Introduce the core of CPS is the

specific separation of idea generation (Divergent thinking) from idea evaluation (convergent thinking).

◦ Tools for Diverging and Converging

◦ Prepare you for more advanced tools and sequences of Creative Problem Solving.

Suggest an

Idea Suggest an

Idea

Evaluate Idea Record Idea

Reject Stop When Enoughor

Implement Converge

Risky Unless Good

Attack and Defend

Score or Withdraw

Follow BS Rules

In Public View

Evaluation Deferred

 Some tips for divergent thinking are: a. Go for Quantity (to have good ideas, you need to

have lots of them- out of quantity comes quality)

b. Defer judgement (criticism or negativity kills ideas prematurely)

c. Make connections (build upon, borrow, adapt from others)

d. Seek novelty (break paradigms, challenge convention)

 Week 5: ◦ Sequential Problem-Solving:

 Stage 1: Problem definition and identification

◦ The Value of Empathy

 Tasks  Readings: R. Keith Sawyer,

'Explaining Creativity: The Science of Human Innovation', (SLATE)

 Pre-recorded Lecture

 Bonus Assignment (SCAMPER)

 Test 1 Preparation

 Join us for Debrief

Purpose of this Bonus Assignment: To demonstrate how ‘creative process tools’ can be applied to enhance creative performance and/or problem-solving.

Deliverables:

A word document/ or hand-written (Scanned) submission that documents your brainstorming. Remember, try to be fluent, flexible, combinatorial, and original in your idea generation. Some tips we discussed include: go for quantity, seek different types of ideas, don’t judge/evaluate your ideas as they come up (just write them down). No reference page required! Just rift!!! Personal pronouns acceptable.

Questions 5- Stron gly

agree

4- Agre

3- Neith

er agree

/ disag ree

2- Disa gree

1- Stron gly

disag ree

1. I don’t find it too difficult to come up with unusual ideas to a problem

1. I like testing and then revising my ideas before coming up with the final solution

1. I like taking the time to clarify the exact nature of a problem

1. I enjoy coming up with unique ways of looking at a problem

1. I enjoy taking the necessary steps to put one of my ideas into action

1. I like to break a broad problem apart to examine it from all angles

Part A: Tabulating Preferences The question numbers have been arranged into 4 columns (A-D) below. Post your survey response as a

number (5-1) beside the corresponding question numbers below. Then, add up the column totals at the bottom. So, for example, at the bottom of column A, you will have a total score for questions 3, 8, 14,

16, 20, 23, 28.

A B C D

3 1 2 5 8 4 6 7

14 11 10 9 16 13 15 12 20 18 19 17

23 22 24 21 28 26 27 25

Total Total Total Total

Clarifier Ideator Developer Implementer

S c o re

s o

n C

o lu

m n s

Axis Title

Score

 Professor & Director of the International Center for Studies in Creativity, Buffalo State University ◦ Creative-Problem Solving Processes

and Preferences

◦ FourSight: an assessment measurement designed to help individuals and/or teams to better understand how they approach solving.

 Develop awareness of natural strengths and preferences when approaching problems.

 The Creative Thinking Process is fairly universal

 It has discreet steps  Each step requires

unique mental skills

 Research tells us… ◦ Most of us prefer some

steps over others ◦ Preferences show up as

strengths and potential blind spots when solving problems

 Preferences NOT ability ◦ Understanding and

leveraging your preference style is key to improving the process and building stronger teams

Clarifier Ideator Developer Implementer

S c o re

s o

n C

o lu

m n s

Axis Title

Score

Clarifier Ideator Developer Implementer

S c o re

s o

n C

o lu

m n s

Axis Title

Score

Clarifier Ideator Developer Implementer

S c o re

s o

n C

o lu

m n s

Axis Title

Score

 Clarifies the problem

 Not quick to move to solutions

 Wants to address the right problem

 Gathers information

 Looks at details

 May over analyze & not move forward

 Are… ◦ Focused, methodical, orderly,

deliberate, organized; may analyze to the extreme and not move forward

 Need… ◦ Order, the facts, understanding of

history, assess to information, permission to ask questions

 Can be perceived as being… ◦ Asking too many questions, pointing

out obstacles, identifies areas that haven’t been thought out, overloading with information

 Looks at big picture  Toys with ideas and

possibilities  Stretches the

imagination  Takes an intuitive

approach  Thinks in more global

terms  May overlook the

details

 Are… ◦ Playful, imaginative, social,

flexible, adventurous, independent, may overlook details

 Need… ◦ Room to be playful, constant

stimulation, variety and change, the big picture

 Can be perceived as being… ◦ Offering ideas that are too off-

the-wall, being too abstract, not sticking to one ideas, being impatient when others don’t get their ideas

 Puts together workable solutions

 Plans steps to implement an idea

 Analyzes and compares potential solutions

 Examines the pluses and minuses of an idea

 May get stuck in developing the perfect solution

 Are… ◦ Reflective, careful, pragmatic,

planful, patient, dedicated, discerning, may get stuck in developing the perfect solution.

 Need… ◦ A chance to consider and evaluate

options, time to craft and develop ideas into useful solutions.

 Can be perceived as being… ◦ Too nit-picky, finding flaws in

ideas, getting locked into one approach.

 Gives structure to ideas

 Brings ideas to fruition

 Focuses on workable solutions

 Focuses on ‘outcomes’

 Takes the “Just do it” approach

 May leap to action too quickly

 Are… ◦ Persistent, decisive, action-

oriented, assertive, may leap to action too quickly

 Need… ◦ The sense that others are

moving just as quick they are, timely responses to their ideas, control

 Can be perceived as being… ◦ Too pushy, readily expressing

their frustration when others do not move as quickly

 Easily relates to each preference

 Even energy across four preferences

 Concerned about group harmony

 Bridges style differences and plugs gaps

 May lose own voice by pleasing others

 Are… ◦ Steady, flexible, inclusive, team

players, stabilizing influence, may lose their own voice in the process

 Need… ◦ Cooperation, collaboration, to

fell others are committed to the challenge

 Can be perceived as being… ◦ Point out what’s not being done,

not allowing their voices to be heard, being overly flexible, becoming peace-makers

 Find a partner

 Identify differences, similarities

 Discuss how your preferences might impact your working relationship

 CPS: A ‘cognitive model’ that deliberately segments problem-solving into discrete stages ◦ Attempts to be

deliberate about engaging both Systems (1 and 2)

 If some imminent disaster threatened the world, and you had one hour in which you could save it, how would you spend your time?

 If you want an accurate understanding of what someone is thinking or feeling, don't make assumptions, just ask

 “If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses.”

 Henry Ford, Founder, Ford motor company

 Two major components:

 Affective empathy (emotional empathy): ◦ Capacity to respond with an appropriate

emotion to another's mental states.

 Based on emotional contagion: being affected by another's emotional or arousal state

 Cognitive empathy: ◦ Capacity to understand another's

perspective or mental state

 Perspective-taking

 Macaque Monkeys ◦ Rizzolatti (et.al.), U of Parma

 Electrodes on monkey to study neurons specialized for hand and mouth actions

 Neurons respond when observed a person picking up food and also when monkey itself picked up food

 10% of neurons have "mirror" properties  Brain gives similar responses to performed and

observed actions

 Humans: ◦ Christian Keysers (et.al) (2002)

 Humans have similar mirror neurons systems  Identified brain regions which respond during

both action and observation of action.  “The observer feels what it feels like to move in the

observed way”

 Subdivided into: ◦ Empathic concern:

 Sympathy and compassion for others in response to their suffering

◦ Personal distress:

 Self-centered feelings of discomfort and anxiety in response to another's suffering.

 Developmental aspects(?)

 Ex., Infants respond to distress of others by getting distressed themselves

 Capacity to understand another's perspective or mental state; ◦ Subdivided into scales:

 Perspective taking: the tendency to spontaneously adopt others' psychological perspectives

 Fantasy: the tendency to identify with {fictional} characters

 Tactical (or "strategic") empathy: the deliberate use of perspective-taking to achieve certain desired ends

 Growing body of research in creativity suggests empathy enables better: A. Perspective taking (McLeod

et al., 1996)

B. Problem Finding/ Perception (Wakefield, 1991)

C. Openness to Experience (Parker, Atkins, & Axtell, 2008)

 Empathizing with very different types of people to design products and experiences that match their specific needs. ◦ Challenge: how to uncover needs

by observing, listening, and interviewing and then pulling their insights together to paint a detailed picture from each user’s point of view  Need-finding (ensuring your work

responds to a person’s genuine need)

 Begin with… what are you studying at Sheridan? ◦ Ask why (or why else when needed) (10 times- or

however many are needed)

◦ Listen… no, I mean really listen to their story in order to understand their perspective

Why?

What’s stopping you?

Why

Else? Why

Else?

What else

Is stopping you?

What else

Is stopping you?

Wish/ or/ Problem Statement

Clarifying – Blue 5a

Wish Statement:

It would be great if…

Why? Why?

How to… How to…

How to…

Why? Why?

Why?

How to… How to…

How to…

Why? Why?

Why?

How to… How to…

What is stopping you? What is stopping you?

How to…

How to…How to…

What is stopping

you? What is

stopping

you?

What is stopping

you? What is

stopping

you?

What is

Stopping you? What is

stopping you?

Why?

What’s Stopping You

Worksheet

 Week 6: Thinking Stages of Creative-Problem Solving

 Topics: ◦ -Associationist theory ◦ -Framing and Functional Fixedness ◦ -Re-structuring ◦ -Cross-fertilization and Conceptual Combination ◦ -Metaphor, analogy and conceptual transfer ◦ -Insight Problem-solving

 Required Readings: ◦ R. Keith Sawyer, 'Explaining Creativity: The Science of

Human Innovation', Chapter 6- The Creative Process- Part 2 (SLATE)

◦ Creativity Unbound, pages 26-57, 64-78