Creative and Critical Thinking

Question 1

What are the five steps in the IDEAL problem solving framework adapted from Bransford & Stein (1993)?

Answer 1

1. Identify problems & opportunities
2. Define goals
3. Explore all possible strategies
4. Anticipate outcomes and Act
5. Look back and Learn

Question 2

What is the definition of creative thinking according to Beale (2007)?

Answer 2

Thinking about thinking in order to bring something new into existence, such as an idea, event or object and also to decide what to believe and how to behave.

Question 3

What is an ill-structured problem?

Answer 3

It generally has no clear paths to its solution. Which means that we need to use our insight and creative processes to solve.

Question 4

What is a well-structured problem?

Answer 4

It has a clear path to solution.

Question 5

What are the seven key concepts under Step 1 Identify Problem and Opportunities

Answer 5

• Attend - to the problem
• Clarify - what the problem is
• Convergence - bring points towards the centre
• Divergence - move away from the centre
• Analyse - the problem
• Reflection - spend time thinking
• Synthesis - bring together / conclude

Question 6

What are the important queries under the ‘Attend’ stage of Step 1?

Answer 6

Avoid procrastination, work out when you need to do it and when you need to start.

Question 7

What are the important queries under the ‘Clarify’ stage of Step 1?

Answer 7

Determine what the problem is, ill or well structured? Potentially create a concept map to lead to Convergence / Divergence.

Question 8

What are the important queries under the Convergence / Divergence stages of Step 1?

Answer 8

Some arguments or queries align and move in towards the question and some move apart, understand what these are.

Question 9

What are the important queries under the ‘Analyse’ stage of Step 1?

Answer 9

What are the causes and effects of the problem? What is the background to the problem?

Question 10

What are the important queries under the ‘Reflection’ stage of Step 1?

Answer 10

Incubation, have I missed anything? Have I had the problem before? Is there someone who has had the problem? Is there alternatives? Do I have all the information?

Question 11

What are the important queries under the ‘Synthesis’ stage of Step 1?

Answer 11

Drawing conclusions as to what exactly the problem is from the clarification, analysis and reflections.

Question 12

What are the two key concepts under Step 2 Define the goals?

Answer 12

• Identify and define the problem accurately

* Creative solution?

Question 13

What are the key concepts under Step 3 - Explore all possible strategies?

Answer 13

• Heuristics - method of discovery
• Algorithms - means of solving a problem
• Means-end analysis - break problem into smaller problems
• Work backwards
• Analogies

Question 14

What are ‘Heuristics’?

Answer 14

Informal, intuitive and speculative strategies (based on judgements).

Question 15

What is ‘trial and error heuristics’?

Answer 15

Where you keep trying something until you find an answer, e.g. children doing a jigsaw keep trying different bits till one fits.

Question 16

What are ‘decision making heuristics’?

Answer 16

They are our own practical logic that is based on our experiences.

Question 17

What is the problem with ‘representative heuristics’?

Answer 17

These are where we have made a judgement based on probability which may be incorrect, e.g. cliches are not always correct.

Question 18

What is the ‘availability heuristic’?

Answer 18

Where we rely on events that we remember in making judgements. Eg. we over-estimate dramatic and scary events (e.g. plane crash or murder) and under-estimate more common mundane things (e.g. diabetes and strokes)

Question 19

Why are algorithms better at solving problems than heuristics?

Answer 19

Because they use successive mechanical iterations of a strategy to reach the correct solution. They look at more than one perspective.

Question 20

What is an analogy?

Answer 20

Comparisons made to show a similarity, they can help create a parallel solution to a problem.

Question 21

What is the key concept in Step 4 - Anticipate outcomes and Act?

Answer 21

To act on a selected strategy as a draft or prototype to test for outcomes and set up contingencies.

Question 22

What is the 3 key concepts in Step 5 - Look back and Learn?

Answer 22

• Look back and evaluate results

* Re-evaluate especially with ill-structured problems.

Question 23

What are the obstacles to developing solutions to problems?

Answer 23

• Listening skills and preconceived ideas
• Perceptual fixedness
• Functional fixedness
• Fear of evaluation
• Lack of information and/or expertise
• Motivation and mental sets
• Lack of confidence

Question 24

What is perceptual fixation?

Answer 24

It is where we go off without first identifying and defining a problem, i.e. we are fixated or stuck in the ineffective approach we have taken.

Question 25

What is functional fixation?

Answer 25

This is where we have the inability to use a familiar object to perform an unfamiliar function.

Question 26

How do motivation and mental sets play a part in problem solving?

Answer 26

The more motivated to solve a problem - the less likely you are to solve it. Also if the mental sets awe bring to the problem are not 'geared' for the problem we also may not be able to solve it.

Question 27

What are six guidelines provided by Beale (2007) to help you think critically?

Answer 27

1. Be open-minded about new ideas 2. Know when you need more information 3. Be aware different people see things differently 4. Know the difference between something that must be true and something that might be true 5. Separate emotional and logical thinking 6. Develop your vocabulary in order to understand others and to make yourself understood.

Question 28

What are 8 common mistakes in thinking (Beale 2007)?

Answer 28

1. Group thinking 2. Poor communication 3. Reacting wrongly to ideas 4. Generalisations 5. Emotional thinking 6. Not looking for hidden options 7. Belief of testimonials 8. Bias view points

Question 29

What are the two forms of arguments and their definition?

Answer 29

Deductive - intends to provide logically conclusive support for the conclusion Inductive - intends to provide probable support for the conclusion.

Question 30

What are the four steps provided by Ruggiero (2002) to evaluate an argument?

Answer 30

1. Understand it 2. Seek out competing views 3. Sort out disagreements 4. Make your judgement

Question 31

What are the key points to help Step 1 - Understand the argument? (4)

Answer 31

* Skim for the main idea * Read with the main idea in mind * Identify evidence * Summarise

Question 32

What are the key points to help Step 3 - Sort out disagreements (2)

Answer 32

* Compile common points | * List differing points of view

Question 33

What are the key points to help Step 4 - Make your judgement? (2)?

Answer 33

* Review the evidence: relevant, factual, complete, sufficient * Test conclusion for reasonableness: reverse conclusion, implications, consequences etc

Question 34

What are the three main conditions which when present subject a group to larger risk of Groupthink?

Answer 34

* Decision makers constitute a cohesive group - working together for a long period * Structural faults exist: insulation, impartial leadership, homogeneity etc * Group poses a provocative situational context. Caused by threats and low self esteem.

Question 35

What are the symptoms of Groupthink?

Answer 35

* Overestimation of the Group - illusion of invulnerability and belief in inherent morality of the group * Closed-mindedness - collective rationalisation and stereo types of out-groups * Pressures toward uniformity - Self-censorship, illusion of unanimity, direct pressure on dissenters and self-appointed mind guards

Question 36

What are some of the 9 points to avoid Groupthink?

Answer 36

* Explore objectives * Explore alternatives * Encourage ideas to be challenged * Examine the risks * Test assumptions * Re-examine initial alternatives * Gather external information * Look at information objectively * Have at least one contingency plan