Creative Problem Solving
According to the Creative Education Foundation, Creative Problem Solving (CPS) "a proven method for approaching
a problem or a challenge in an imaginative and innovative way. It’s a tool that
helps people re-define the problems they face, come up with breakthrough ideas
and then take action on these new ideas. Alex Osborn and Sidney Parnes
conducted extensive research on the steps that are involved when people solve
problems, the result of which is the following 6 steps that are broken down
into 3 stages.
At the same time that CPS is a structured process, it’s also a very flexible one. When you begin to use and internalize the CPS process, you find that it’s cyclical. You begin to see how to move from step to step, and how to jump back and forth between steps. When CPS becomes part of your own way of thinking and working, you can use one step at a time, as you need it, when you need it. Once you understand the fundamentals of CPS, you can adapt this process to every situation you encounter, thereby realizing its power.
Objective Finding - Identify Goal, Wish or Challenge
This could be a wish or a goal. It might be the initial dissatisfaction or a desire that opens the door to using the CPS process.
Fact Finding - Gather Data
Assess and review all the data that pertains to the situation at hand. Who’s involved, what’s involved, when, where, and why it’s important. Make a list of the facts and information, as well as the more visceral hunches, feelings, perceptions, assumptions and gossip around the situation. In this step, all the data is taken into consideration to review the objective and begin to innovate.
Problem Finding - Clarify the Problem
In this step, explore the facts and data to find all the problems and challenges inherent in the situation, and all the opportunities they represent. This is about making sure you’re focusing on the right problem. It is possible to come up with the right answer to the wrong problem. Re-define what you want or what’s stopping you.
Idea Finding - Generate Ideas
Generating ideas is much more than brainstorming. During this step, be vigilant about deferring judgment and coming up with wild, outrageous, out-of-the-box ideas. This is where you explore ideas that are possible solutions and have the most fun. It’s also where you need to stretch to make connections, take risks, and try new combinations to find potentially innovative solutions.
Solution Finding – Select and Strengthen Solutions
First, try to strengthen and improve the best ideas generated. Next, generate the criteria that needs to be considered to evaluate the ideas for success. Apply that criteria to the top ideas and decide which are most likely to solve the redefined problem. The best idea needs to meet criteria that makes it actionable before it becomes the solution. A creative idea is not really useful if it won’t be implemented.
Acceptance Finding – Plan for Action
In this step, look at who’s responsible, what has to be done by when, and what resources are available in order to realize this idea as a full-fledged, activated solution.
Source: http://www.creativeeducationfoundation.org/our-process/what-is-cps
At the same time that CPS is a structured process, it’s also a very flexible one. When you begin to use and internalize the CPS process, you find that it’s cyclical. You begin to see how to move from step to step, and how to jump back and forth between steps. When CPS becomes part of your own way of thinking and working, you can use one step at a time, as you need it, when you need it. Once you understand the fundamentals of CPS, you can adapt this process to every situation you encounter, thereby realizing its power.
Objective Finding - Identify Goal, Wish or Challenge
This could be a wish or a goal. It might be the initial dissatisfaction or a desire that opens the door to using the CPS process.
Fact Finding - Gather Data
Assess and review all the data that pertains to the situation at hand. Who’s involved, what’s involved, when, where, and why it’s important. Make a list of the facts and information, as well as the more visceral hunches, feelings, perceptions, assumptions and gossip around the situation. In this step, all the data is taken into consideration to review the objective and begin to innovate.
Problem Finding - Clarify the Problem
In this step, explore the facts and data to find all the problems and challenges inherent in the situation, and all the opportunities they represent. This is about making sure you’re focusing on the right problem. It is possible to come up with the right answer to the wrong problem. Re-define what you want or what’s stopping you.
Idea Finding - Generate Ideas
Generating ideas is much more than brainstorming. During this step, be vigilant about deferring judgment and coming up with wild, outrageous, out-of-the-box ideas. This is where you explore ideas that are possible solutions and have the most fun. It’s also where you need to stretch to make connections, take risks, and try new combinations to find potentially innovative solutions.
Solution Finding – Select and Strengthen Solutions
First, try to strengthen and improve the best ideas generated. Next, generate the criteria that needs to be considered to evaluate the ideas for success. Apply that criteria to the top ideas and decide which are most likely to solve the redefined problem. The best idea needs to meet criteria that makes it actionable before it becomes the solution. A creative idea is not really useful if it won’t be implemented.
Acceptance Finding – Plan for Action
In this step, look at who’s responsible, what has to be done by when, and what resources are available in order to realize this idea as a full-fledged, activated solution.
Source: http://www.creativeeducationfoundation.org/our-process/what-is-cps
What is Creative Problem Solving and what isn't?
In other words, Creative Problem Solving is:
- structred process
- flexible
- cyclical
- objective
- innovative
-requires higher order thinking skills
On the other hand, Creative Problem Solving is not:
- Just giving out ideas
- spontaneous
- isolated
- conventional
- structred process
- flexible
- cyclical
- objective
- innovative
-requires higher order thinking skills
On the other hand, Creative Problem Solving is not:
- Just giving out ideas
- spontaneous
- isolated
- conventional
What is a Creative Problem Solving facilitator like?
The Merriam-Webster defines a facilitator as " one
that facilitates; especially : one that helps to bring about an
outcome (as learning, productivity, or communication) by providing indirect or
unobtrusive assistance, guidance, or supervision <the workshop's facilitator kept discussion flowing
smoothly".
In a Creative Problem Solving process a facilitator is hat person who is responsible of keeping thing s flowing in the right direction, making sure that the participants have a clear idea of the problem, produce innovative ideas and finally take actions based on the ideas. A CPS Facilitator always has to keep in mind the following aspects:*
-Always have a back up tool
-Be flexible through the whole process
-Roll with the punches/go with the flow
-Need to respond when you see a situation needing adapting
*http://www.cpsb.com/research/communique/featured-articles/Becoming-a-Flexible-Facilitator
In a Creative Problem Solving process a facilitator is hat person who is responsible of keeping thing s flowing in the right direction, making sure that the participants have a clear idea of the problem, produce innovative ideas and finally take actions based on the ideas. A CPS Facilitator always has to keep in mind the following aspects:*
-Always have a back up tool
-Be flexible through the whole process
-Roll with the punches/go with the flow
-Need to respond when you see a situation needing adapting
*http://www.cpsb.com/research/communique/featured-articles/Becoming-a-Flexible-Facilitator
How can I use Creative Problem Solving?
To use Creative Problem Solving you must first think of challenges or issues that you would like to solve or improve. It is important that you feel commited towards this issue so you can own the problem and do something about it. This wil also keep you motivated to go through the process. However, it is important to keep in mind that one of the most important parts of CPS is the process not the solution itself.
CPS can be used in many different ways. We can use it in school with our students or even at home when we are trying to decide what to do during the summer!
When using CPS we must follow some steps:
1. Assess the situation (gather data)
-Diverge: Background information (personal orientation, desired outcome, situational outlook and problem methodology)
-Converge (identify challenge, persons involved, desired outcomes, obstacles and methodology)
2. Clarification (Explore the vision)
-Diverge: Articulate your goals, wishes and challenges starting with phrases like: "I wish..." or "It would be great if..."
-Converge: Review your statements and choose the one over which you have more ownwership, motivated to solve and requiere imagination to accomplish.
3. Clarification (Formulating challenges)
-Diverge: restate your challenge from as many perspectives as possible. Use statements like "How to...?", "How might I...?" or "In what ways might I...?"
-Converge: Select the most promising and intriguing statement to consider, then look though your list of problems and choose your "hits". Finally, rewrite your problem again in a way that the challenge is stated in a clear and simple manner.
4.Transformation (Exploring ideas)
Diverge: come up with as many ideas as you can to try to solve the problem.
Converge: select the most promising ideas and mark your hits. Cluster the ideas to get a better view of the possible solutions.
4. Transformation (Formulating solutions)
Diverge: Review clusters of ideas and select a technique that will help you screen, select and refine your clusters. A very useful technique is the PPCo (Pluses, Potentials and Concerns)
Converge: Rewrite a new and improved statement of your solution using specific and measurable results. Use the statement "What I see myself doing is...."
5. Implementation (Exploring Acceptance)
Diverge: List the potential assiters that will serve to implement your solution (who, what, where, when, why and how) and then the potential resisters that will hinder the implementation of the solution. Select a key resister and write it as a "how to" statement
Converge: Rewrite a new and improved statement of your solution using specific and measurable results. Use the statement "What I NOW see myself doing is...."
6. Implementation
Diverge: List 10-15 action steps that will detail everything that might need to happen in order to bring your solution to reality.
Converge: Form a specific plan of action