Problem Solving, Decision Making And Critical Thinking
In this day and age of cut throat competition, everybody is either trying to out-think or out-do each other. Each and every aspect of life has now taken on a very different dynamic and everything ultimately leads to just being a “contest.”
While running the race to win the coveted first prize, people try to apply as much of their brain force as possible, in order to arrive at conclusive and advantageous decisions.
If you are one of those who is finding it tough to match the footsteps of such lateral and “out of the box” thinkers, then you have come to the right place.
This theme will be dedicated to the cause of understanding the concept of critical thinking, analyzing its various aspects and looking at the different ways in which you can implement it to derive all its benefits. It will also provide you with detailed information on problem solving – the problems that we face and also the procedure to use. There are examples that have been stated across the theme that will help you understand the situations better. You will find that problem solving, critical thinking and decision making go hand in hand. It is only through critical thinking and decision making that we will be able to identify a solution to any problem. These problems could be small or very big. But the process of problem solving is fool proof and helps you identify solutions with ease.
The theme cover the different strategies that you could use to solve a problem. There is also a detailed explanation on the problem solving cycle. This process is usually used while working towards overcoming a problem.
Problem solving and critical thinking are usually directed towards managers and supervisors in an organisation. However this is not true! Every human being faces problems in life. This process can be used to deal with those problems as well.
The theme will also look at your problem-solving skills and provide you with tips to increase your brain power and utilize common sense solutions to solving problems at an elevated rate.
This theme will also help you improve your decision making capacity, and allow you to make full use of your potential, in understanding how the human brain works and how you can successfully improve your life by making the best use of your mind power.
By the time we are finished discussing this theme, you will start to realize how much more potential you have and be able to start to lay the groundwork for implementing critical thinking in your life.
I want to thank you for opening this blog page and hope it helps you improve your problem solving and critical thinking skills.
Let us begin
PROBLEM SOLVING
Problem solving is a term that every human being might have come across on multiple occasions. Everybody states that a manager or a supervisor has to be a master at problem solving. But this is not true! Every human being faces multiple problems in life that he must try to solve. For instance a housewife has to plan the expenditure for her house carefully. If she finds that she is running short of finances, she must work backwards and see how she can overcome the problem while purchasing the same amount of products for her house.
The process of problem solving is not relevant only to human beings. It could be related to most living beings. It was found that there are cats living in the arctic region. Its climate is terribly cold and there is barely any life in the region. There are cats in the region though! Surprising is it not? These cats are lean because their body burns the fat to keep it warm. It cannot last forever without food. There are rabbits in the arctic too. These rabbits are food for the cats. The cat cannot chase the rabbit all over the region. It cannot lose all of its energy in chasing a rabbit that it might not catch. The cat actually analyzes the situation and checks on whether or not it should chase the rabbit. It takes into consideration the distance between the rabbit and itself. If it feels that it can chase the rabbit and catch it, it goes on its hunt.
This is a classic example of problem solving. The problem at hand here is whether or not the cat must hunt for the rabbit. The cat uses the basics of physics in order to obtain a solution. The answer is very simple – yes or no. It is the method through which the answer is obtained that is problem solving!
This method generally consists of using ad hoc methods to identify solutions to problems of any magnitude. These methods though ad hoc are used in an orderly fashion in order to obtain next to perfect results. A lot of these techniques are used in computer science, engineering and mathematics. These techniques have been developed through the techniques studied and used in psychology.
What is problem solving?
Problem solving is that term that has found its place in most fields. However, each of these fields has a different perspective on what problem solving exactly is. For example, in psychology problem solving would be defined as finding a solution to any mental issues or processes whereas in statistics it would be defined as a method to obtaining a solution for a certain issue on how many fish are there in a lake.
One must remember that the problems can also be categorized. These categories would be well defined problems and ill – defined problems. Ill – defined problems, as the name suggests are problems that do not have a clear cut goal. It makes it difficult to come up with solutions to such
problems. You might not be able to identify an expected solution. Well defined problems on the other hand are those problems to which solutions can be found easily. These problems have well defined goals which make it easier to estimate the magnitude of the problem and also identify feasible solutions to the same. We might also be able to plan in advance if we identify such a
problem.
When you are faced with a problem in any field, or even in your life, you might either try to solve the problem through logic or by trying to interpret the problem. No matter which method you use, you have to first understand the goal of the problem and also try to identify the different routes you can take to solve the problem. This is the key to problem solving! You might sometimes have to resort to abstract thinking and try coming up with a creative solution.
For instance, consider that you teach a bunch of 10 year olds English. You have to cover the different parts of speech in an hour’s time. You know that the children that you teach have a low attention span. Your problem here is to grab the attention of the kids for an hour in order to help them understand the parts of speech. You could either go about teaching them in the regular manner by using the text or you can make it fun for them! This is a problem where you would use abstract thinking in order to find a creative solution. You know that your children love games. So you can come up with a brilliant game that they will enjoy. But ensure that this game also teaches
them the parts of speech!
The Evolutionary perspective of Problem Solving
Everybody knows that the theory of evolution was stated by Charles Darwin. What we do not know is that this theory was developed to understand why there were so many categories of species that are found. It is also a very important theory in psychology since it explains how different species were created for a certain purpose. These purposes were often the goals that the species had to achieve. Psychology uses these goals since it helps in trying to explain and to predict the behaviour of these species.
There are several components that are involved in evolution. The one that is most common is natural selection. Natural selection is a process where a design is chosen from a bunch of alternative designs depending on how it helps them reach closer to their goal. It is because of this component that everybody has to adapt to different situations. This is a major component in
problem solving. The later topics cover the use of alternate solutions (designs) to help a personachieve the goal – which is to solve the problem at hand. If the person finds that the adaptation was useful, it is passed on to the next generation. When compared to problem solving, the adaptations are the solutions which are passed down depending on whether or not they have
worked well.
Another main component is the method of sexual selection. This process has the characteristic that individuals rival against people of the same sex and find themselves attracted immensely to individuals of the opposite sex. The concept of rivalry comes very often in problem solving. People might find it difficult to avoid blaming one another when under pressure. However, this problem can be overcome as well.
As mentioned above, every field uses problem solving and each field has a different perspective on how problem solving works for them. This section covers a few definitions of problem solving in four most common fields.
Psychology
Problem solving is used in psychology to try and obtain solutions to problems dealing with mental health. It refers to the state where you desire to reach a goal for a present condition that is close to the problem itself or near it or relatively far off from the goal. You might use complex logic to understand the condition and fill in the gaps if any in order to move closer to achieving the goal. However, problem solving is part of a big whole. You will first need to find and understand the problem and then try to give the problem a clear shape. Only then do you move into problem solving.
Problem solving is considered to be the most complicated function to the intellect. It is a process that requires the control over our cognitive minds and also over our fundamental skills. In this field, problem solving has two main categories – mathematical problem solving and personal problem solving. It is the latter that is harder to overcome. Although the most common method of problem solving that was used since the ancient times was mathematical problem solving, many psychologists have found evidences to believe otherwise. They believed that human beings use self – introspection, behaviourism and experimentation to find solutions to psychological problems.
For instance, if a person is depressed, he could use either self – introspection or experimentation to identify a solution to the problem. His goal is to overcome his feeling of depression. Once he has identified his goal he can self – introspect and try identifying the root cause of the goal and
identify a solution for the same. However, if he does choose to use experimentation, he would have to conduct different social experiments on himself to identify the cause of the problem leading him to uncovering the solution to the problem too.
Computer Science and Algorithms
Every software company that develops new software has to troubleshoot and solve problems that the new software might have. In the field of computer science and artificial intelligence where algorithms are the methods through which the programs are designed, problem solving is a hero!
However, it is not the only process that people working in these fields have to do. They have to first determine the problem that they face, then remove any duplication in the problem, analyze and then solve the problem.
For instance if the programmers or developers find that there is a bug in the coding of a new app, they will have to first identify the line at which the error occurs. Once they find the error they will have to check if the error has occurred anywhere else in the code. After identifying this they can work on solving the issue that is at hand. It could be that the programmer did not have enough knowledge and made the error. If that is the case, the supervisor or manager can work on improving the programmer’s knowledge or can assign the coding to another programmer.
Engineering
Problem solving in engineering is used to overcome product or process failures. It is usually done to rectify the problem and also to ensure that the problem does not occur again.
Problem solving can also be used to estimate a problem that might occur due to a process or a product and find a solution to prevent it. For this you will have to identify the problem and also analyze it before you move onto solving it or mitigating the problem. Sometimes you might have to work backwards to identify the cause of the problem. It could be a minor defect in the beginning
of the process or at the beginning of the manufacturing of a product. You use reverse engineering to solve the problem. Other methods used are linear and nonlinear programming and simulation.
Characteristics of Difficult Problems
Difficult problems are those that are ill – defined. They have some characteristics that are typical. The following section focuses on those problems.
Lack of clarity
At times you might not know what the situation is. You might troubleshoot and realize that the problem at hand is not the one you had to work on. At times you might begin problem solving and might have reached a certain stage after which you might not know where to go. The goal to the problem is not explicitly defined making it difficult to identify a solution.
Multiple goals
There may be situations where there are multiple goals that you might have to reach. For instance consider a company that manufactures soap. There might be a problem where the different departments – production, sales and marketing, accounting – might have different goals. The production department might want to know what the problem with the quality of the soap is. The sales and marketing department might want details on how better to improve their advertisement in order to bring in more profits. This might create a problem since each department might want their problem solved first creating opposition.
Multiple items, decisions and relations
Based on the example above, every department in a company has different goals. These goals could either coincide or might be as different as night and day. It is when they differ that problems arise. There might be issues where there is no proper communication between the departments leading to problems with allocation.
Time
When considering a problem, we must estimate the time for which the problem might persist. If this is not done there is unpredictability and we will not be able to find a solution to the problem. There might be different effects on the problem due to external factors while trying to solve the problem. This may happen immediately or sometime later in the future. In order to avoid drastic effects of these factors on our problem, we must identify the dynamic state of the problem and also try to analyze the different factors that affect the problem. In this way we can avoid the effects of these factors on the problem, or prevent them from causing any drastic effects.
When you identify a problem first check if it has the characteristics stated above. If it does, then you will have to follow a different path in order to obtain the solution. Usually, you will directly have to attack these characteristics.
Representations of a Problem in the mind
In the recent years, psychological research has boomed tremendously. This boom has helped us distinguish between the external and internal representations of any event that might happen in our lives. The first kind of representation is linked to our emotions and memory. It is based on the
knowledge that we have and the structure of our memory. The latter is based on our knowledge of the external factors like the environment – physical objects. It has also been found that the information that is a part of the internal representations is usually brought out through cognitive
processes.
Problems are defined as models that represent the situation that the agent is experiencing. In order to represent a problem, you will have to analyze it and break it down into several smaller components to make it easy. These components are:
1. Objects
2. Predicates
3. State of mind and body
4. The environment
5. The operators – the causes of the problem
6. How do we select the problem and the causes
The efficiency of Problem Solving is dependent on how your mind represents any problem that you face. This representation is usually hindered by personal experiences and beliefs. When you analyze the problem and change the representation of the problem from one to another, you will find that you are creating a space that helps you understand the problem in a new light. This is called restructuring. Look at the example below to have a clear understanding about restructuring.
‘There are two boys of different ages. They are playing badminton. The older boy is a trained badminton player making him more skilled. Whenever the two of them play a match, it is easy to predict who the winner might be. The younger boy is defeated continuously and starts to lose interest in the game. Now the older boy has a problem! He has nobody to play the game with.
There are four ways in which you can solve this problem:
1. The older boy can be nice to younger boy by letting him win at least one game.
2. The younger boy can agree to play another game.
3. The boys could stop playing.
4. The older boy can shame the younger boy into playing another game.
However the older boy does not necessarily have to select the solutions stated above. Instead of playing a game of competition he can agree to play a game of cooperation. He can tell the younger boy that he will help him master the game like he did. They could begin with simple shots. Once
they realize that the younger boy is not dropping any of the easy shots they can move to the harder shots. That way the older boy is helping the younger boy learn the game better and he has found a solution to his problem as well. Since this benefits both the younger and the older boy, it is accepted happily.’
The important thing to notice in the above example is that the older boy restructured the problem that he was facing. He understood that he had adopted a wrong attitude in the beginning which made it hard for the younger boy to keep playing. This is how representations work in the mind.
We try to analyze the problem deeply and see if there is any other way to represent the problem. You might surprise yourself when you realize that the problem that you are facing has a very simple solution. However, new representations can make problems difficult or easy depending on the magnitude of the problem.
Barriers to Problem Solving
Problems are barriers themselves. But there are barriers that we might face when we are trying to find solutions to problems. The most common barriers that people usually face are irrelevantinformation, bias towards confirmation, baseless constraints, mindset and fixedness to one method
of solving problems. The following section covers these constraints in detail.
Irrelevant Information
As the name suggests, problems might sometimes have information that is neither relevant to the problem at hand nor of any importance to the person solving the problem. This kind of information serves no purpose in trying to solve a problem. It has a detrimental effect on the problem solving process. This barrier is dangerous in its own way.
While problem solving, you might not know that the information provided is in fact not of importance. You might spend days trying to analyze the information only to find that it has slowed you down and has not brought you closer to the solution.
Consider a simple arithmetic problem. Let us say that you have been asked to calculate the area of a room. You have been given the number of chairs in the room, the number of people occupying those chairs, the colour of the walls, the quality of wood used for the door, the number of windows in the room and the number of fans in the room. Most of this information is irrelevant. You could probably use the number of chairs in the room to help you get an idea of the perimeter of the room. But apart from that you cannot use the information that is provided. Sometimes you might not even realize that this information is useless to you. You might become solving the problem when you
realize that it was a waste of time. This is in fact a very simple example.
Consider a problem that is faced while developing software or after having developed the software. The company might have spent a billion dollars on the project. Assume that there is an error in the algorithm of the software. You might have to use reverse engineering to identify and rectify the error. If the information that is provided to you does not have the line in the algorithm where the error occurs but information that is worthless to you, you might be spending another billion dollars in order to rectify the problem.
Irrelevant information is a red herring. This is because of how the information is represented. A problem has to be represented properly if we are to find a solution to it. It could be represented visually, verbally, mathematically, statistically or even as a book. But if there is irrelevant
information provided, it might take you a very long time to solve a simple problem. Sometimes you might not be able to find a solution to the problem itself. Consider the Buddhist monk example. This is a brilliant example on how irrelevant information deters you from finding a solution and also shows you how the irrelevant information is provided.
‘A Buddhist monk begins at dawn one day. He walks up a mountain and reaches the summit at sunset. He meditates at the summit for several days until one day at dawn he begins to walk down the mountain. Making no assumptions about his starting or stopping points, or about his speed ofwalking, prove that there is a place on the path that he occupies at the same time during the day on the journey up and down the mountain.’
This problem is one that is next to impossible to solve. This is because of how the information has been represented. Since it is done verbally, we try to associate an image to every word that has been stated in the problem. This is very difficult to do since there is a lot of information that is irrelevant to the problem. It is easier to understand this problem had it been represented visually. That way there would be no difficulty in trying to understand the problem or to imagine the scenarios. Had it been represented visually, it would have been easier to solve the problem.
If you identify the perfect way to represent a problem, you will see that it is easier to solve the problem no matter how difficult. Such problems are often used to test potential clients. It is a strategy where the client is tested on his ability to remove irrelevant information. You will have to master the act of identifying irrelevant information. Only then you will be able to identify a
solution to the problem.
Bias towards Confirmation
There is a fundamental clause that a statistician has to follow. When a statistical survey is conducted, he must try to obtain all the information for his hypothesis from the sample without favouring any observation in the sample. He must observe impartially and use the information that he obtains in order to find the solution to the problem. It has been proved that any person following the above theory obtains solutions with ease. These solutions are accurate and can be used immediately to solve any problem. This method is not limited only to statisticians. Every person in their respective field can use this. It can also be done in your personal life.
This bias is usually defined as one’s unintentional need to corrupt the information that is obtained. For instance, if the statistician has to conduct a survey on the effects of smoking on life, he will first collect data. He could use any method of collection – he could verbally ask questions, or have
questionnaires and schedules filled up. He might have a notion where he believes that smoking causes death to the smoker and also to the people around the smoker. He might try to lean his analysis towards that notion. This is done unintentionally but might make it difficult to identify a suitable solution.
Mind-set
This barrier was first stated by Abraham Luchins. He had deduced this barrier through his popular water jug experiments. The experiment dealt with having the participants or subjects fill a jug with a certain amount of water. They had to achieve this by using three other jugs that were of different
quantities. They could only use these jugs one time each to fill the jug up. This was the first set of problems that were given to the participants or the subjects. Ideally this problem could be solved in a very simple manner involving a single technique.After this step, Luchins gave his subjects another problem that they could solve using the same methods that they used to fill the jug with water. They could however use a simpler technique to
solve the new problem. Luchins realized that his subjects tended to use the same methods that they are accustomed to. There might be other simpler techniques that they could use but they prefer to use the methods that they are familiar with.
For instance, consider a mathematics problem. Let us assume that the students have been given a problem on integration. They might be accustomed to solving it in a certain method since they have been taught that way. However, there might be simpler ways to solve the problem at hand. But when given this problem, the students might choose to use the lengthier and tedious process since they are used to it.
The mindset plays a great role when it comes to the attempt to solve problems. We solve these problems using a technique that has been proved successful to us over the last few experiences that we might have had. But this does not necessarily mean that the solutions obtained through this
method will derive optimum or accurate solutions to the similar problems that we might face now. It is ideal for people to think beyond their experiences and find solutions to the problems they might be facing.
This was demonstrated by Norman Maier in 1931. His experiment challenged his subjects to solve a problem using household tools – pliers. They were asked to use these tools in an unconventional manner. It was observed that the subjects could not view the object any differently from how they had viewed it over the last few years of their lives. They had created an image of the object in their mind and had associated a use to that object which prevented them from thinking otherwise.
Most people avoid deviating from their mindsets. This phenomenon is termed as fixation. Fixation is a psychological phenomenon that is an obsession with strategies that have been attempted previously. These strategies are usually unsuccessful in solving problems that are new but similar to the old ones. It was revealed by Jennifer Wiley, in the late 1990s that people with expertise in a certain field were bound to create a mindset. She conducted thorough research and concluded that these people who were considered experts in their field were in fact people with the problem of fixation.
In our next article we shall look at the various problem solving strategies.