Hindrances to Problem Solving (BS) ppt.pdf

Hindrances to Problem Solving. Cognition. Behavioral Science.

1. Hindrances to problem solving

2. Oneofthebestwaystobecomeabetterproblem-solveristobeawareof
thefactorsthathindertheproblemsolvingprocess.Soawarenessto
problemsusalwaysthefirststeptosolvingproblems.

3. Whatareproblemsolvingblocks?

Ablockisanythingwhichpreventsus
findinganeffectivesolutiontoa
problem.Weallexperiencethem,butof
differenttypesandintensities.The
blockshavebeengroupedinvarious
waysbydifferentauthorsaccordingto
theircause,e.g.:

perceptual

emotional

intellectual

expressive

Workenvironmental

cultural

It'simportantthatyouareableto
recognizewhenblocksarehindering
yourproblemsolvingsothatyoucan
takeactiontoovercomethem.

4. 
Perception:Thisplaysimportantroleasinaccurateperceptionofaproblemcreates
difficulties.Forexamplestereotypethinking.Barrierstofindingthebestsolution

Perceptualblocksarisefromthewaywehavelearnttorecogniseinformationfromthe
worldaroundus.Wedevelophabitsof'seeing'theworld,whichsometimescangetinthe
wayoffindingthebestsolutiontoaproblem,egseeingonlythemostobvioussolution.

Expression:Ifweareunabletoarticulateandexpressideasadequately,
misunderstandingsmayarisewhichgetinthewayoffindingappropriatesolutions.

Expressiveblocksarisewhenweareunabletocommunicateinthewayrequiredto
produceaneffectivesolution,egnotbeingabletoexpressourideaseffectivelytothose
whohavetoimplementthesolution.

5. 
Emotions:Italsostronglyinfluencesproblemsolving.Forexampleifweareanxious
abouttheoutcomeofsituation,areimpatientorafraiditaffectstheproblemsolving.

Emotionalblocksarisewhenouremotionalneedsconflictwiththesituation,egwhenwe
donotproposearadical.solutiontoaproblembecausewefeelitmightsoundridiculous
andmakeuslookfoolish.

Intellect:Ifwelackknowledgeorskillinaparticularareaornotmethodicalinour
approachwearelikelytoexaggeratetheproblemandnotsolveit.

Intellectualblocksarecausedbyusnotbeingabletoassimilateinformationintheways
requiredtosolveaproblem,egnotknowinghowtoevaluateideastoselectthemost
effectivesolution.

6. 
WorkEnvironment:Thisisanimportantaspectinproblemsolvingasweknowthat
problemcanbesolvedinahealthywayifwehavethesupportofoursuperiors,
colleaguesandjuniorsattheworkplace.

Environmentalblocksarecausedby.externalobstaclesinthesocialorphysical
environment,whichpreventusfromsolvingaproblemeffectively,egdistractionsfrom
thetask.

Culturalblocksresultfromourconditioningtoacceptwhatisexpectedor'normal'ina
givensituation,egwhentheworkethicsaysthatwemustbeserious-minded,butfinding
aneffectivesolutionrequiressomeplayfulfantasy.

7. Perceptual:

8. Seeingonlywhatyouexpecttosee

Torecognisesituationswelookforpatternsofkeyfeatureswhichwehavelearntbyexperiencerepresenta
particularsituation~Ifthekeyfeatures'fit'weassumethesituationsarethesame.Thisoftenobscuresthe
"truenatureofaproblem,eitherbecauseweexcluderelevantinformation(becauseitisn'takeyfeatureor
didn'toccurinthepast),orincludeinformationsimplybecauseweassumeitisthere.
Stereotyping

Inrecognisingsituationsweautomaticallyapplylabels(likedoor,machine,laziness)whichcanpreventus
seeingallthefeaturesof.thesituation.Oftenwedon'tlookbeyondtheobvious.Forexample,ifsomeone
isn'tworkingashardaswewouldlikeandweapplythelabel'lazy'tothatperson,wemightoverlookthe
possibilitythatboredomwithmonotonousworkistheproblem,andnotlaziness.
Notrecognisingproblems

Asurprisingnumberofproblemsgounnoticedorarerecognisedonlywhentheeffectshavebecomesevere
andemergencyactionisrequired.
Notseeingtheprobleminperspective

Thisisrelatedtosomeofthepreviousblocks,andresultsfrom:

takingtoonarrowaviewofthesituation,sothatwerecogniseonlypartoftheproblemortheinformation
requiredtosolveit

failingtorecognisehowdifferentpartsoftheproblemarerelated

seeingonlysuperficialaspectsoftheproblem,sothatthesolutionisinadequate

failingtoseetheproblemfromthepointofviewofotherpeoplewhoareinvolved.
Mistakingcauseandeffect

Manyproblemsarerecognisedbytheireffectsortheabsenceofexpectedresults.Ifcauseandeffectare
confusedthenweareunlikelytofindaneffectivesolution.Forexample,ifgoodsdonotarriveandwe
assumethatthesupplierislateindespatchingthemwheninfactourorderingdepartmenthasfailedtosend
outtheorder,thenoursearchforsolutionswillbemisdirected.Inthissituationthelatedespatchofthe
goodsisaneffectoftheproblemandnotacause.

9. Emotional
:

10. 
Emotionalblocksexistwhenweperceiveathreattoouremotionalneeds.Theseneedsdifferintypeandstrengthfrom
persontopersonbutincludeneedsforachievement,recognition,order,belongingandself-esteem.Theemotionalblocks
include:
Fearofmakingmistakesorlookingfoolish

Thisisthemostsignificantemotionalblockbecauseitaffectsmostofusandisdifficulttoovercome.Asaresultof
traditionalschooling,theexpectedreactionwhenwemakeamistakeorsuggestradicallydifferentideasislaughterand
ridicule.Noonelikesbeinglaughedatandasaresultwelearntofearmakingmistakesandtoavoidsuggestingideaswhich
aredifferent.

Thisblockbecomesmoresevereinthepresenceofcolleaguesofadifferentranktoourown.With.thosewhoaremore
seniorweimaginethatwewillbethoughtinexperiencedorimmature.Withthosemorejuniorwewanttoprotectourimage
asbeingknowledgeableandexperienced.
Impatience

Beingimpatienttosolveaproblemmaybedueeithertoadesiretosucceedquicklyortoendthediscomfortorlosscaused
bytheproblem.Thishastwomajorconsequences.Wetendtograbthefirstsolutionwhichcomesalong,withoutadequate
analysisoftheproblem,andweevaluateideas.toofast,almostinstinctivelyrejectingunusualideas.Eitherway,our
solutionisunlikelytobethemosteffectiveavailable.
Avoidinganxiety

Thisisanothercommonblock.Someof-usaremoresusceptibletoanxietyandalsofinditmoreunpleasantthanothers.
Manyfactorscancauseanxiety,includinghighrisk,disorderandambiguity,long-termstress,andfearforoursecurity.The
effectsonproblemsolvingincludeavoidingrisks,indecisioninsituationswhicharenot'blackandwhite',excessive
relianceonothers'judgement,andavoidingchallengingthestatusquo..
Fearoftakingrisks

Thisleadstotheavoidanceofsituationswheretheoutcomeisuncertainorcouldbeunpleasant.Amajorcauseisourdesire
forsecurity.Theconsequencesincludesettingobjectiveswithineasyreach,sothatthereisnoriskoffailure,andaccepting
knownsolutionsinpreferencetotheunusualbecausetheirvalueiscertain.Alikingfortakingrisksandover-confidencein
beingabletoavoidunpleasant,consequencesaremoredangerousblocks.
Needfororder

Thisisrelatedtoavoidinganxiety.Itcanleadtoaninabilitytocopewiththefrustrationofsituationswhicharenotclearcut
orwhereambiguitiesexist.
Lackofchallenge

Thismayarisewhentheproblemisroutineorthebenefits/lossesarenotsignificanttous.Theresultisthateitherwedon't
tackletheproblemorwetaketheeasiest,quickestroutetosolution.

11. Intellectual:

12. 
Intellectualblocksexistwhenwedon'thavethenecessarythinkingskillstofindasuccessfulsolution,orare
unabletousethemeffectively.Theyinclude:
Lackofknowledgeorskillintheproblemsolvingprocess

Thisisoneofthemostcommonblocks.Itincludes:inadequateskillsinanalyticalandcreativethinking;an
inflexiblestrategy,usingoneapproachforeverytypeofproblem;theinabilitytousethevariousproblem
solvingtechniques.Theycanallleadtoineffectivesolutions.
Lackofcreativethinking

Thisisalwayscausedbyaninabilitytousetheskillsratherthantheirabsence,resultingfromthedominance
ofanalyticalthinkinginourday-to-daylivesandalackofpractice.
Inflexiblethinking

Thisisadifficultyinswitchingfromonetypeofthinkingskilltoanother,suchasfromanalysistoidea
generationorfromverbaltovisualthinking.
Notbeingmethodical

Thisisperhapsthemostcommonblock.Astep-by-stepapproachisessentialtosolvingproblemseffectively.
Lackofknowledgeorskillinusingthe'Language'oftheproblem

Ifaprobleminvolvesalanguagethatwecannotunderstandorcannotuse,suchasspecialistjargonor
statisticalanalysis,wewillnotbeabletotackletheproblemeffectively.Similarly,wemayusean
inappropriatelanguage,suchastryingtofindanerrorinaccountsbydescribingthesituationverballyrather
thananalysingitmathematically.
Usinginadequateinformation

Thishappenswhenwedonotmakesufficientefforttocollecttherelevantinformation,ordonotunderstand
whatinformationisrelevant,wheretofindit,orhowitrelatestotheproblem.Similarly,usinginaccurate
informationcanleadustothewrongconclusions.

13. Expression
:

14. 
Expressiveblocksexistwhenwedonothavetheknowledgeorskillsnecessaryto
communicateorrecordideasinthewaysrequired.Theyarecausedbyaninabilityto'use
'languages'effectively,suchaswords,drawings,mathematics,scientificsymbols,andsoon.
Theyinclude:

Usingthewronglanguage

Someproblemsaremoreeffectivelysolvedorcommunicatedusingonelanguageratherthan
another.Forexample,weareunlikelytogetveryfarifwerecorddataonlyverballywhenthe
problemrequiresquantitativeanalysis.Similarly,peoplemayfindithardtograspour
meaningifwetrytoexplainourfeelingsaboutasituationusingmathematicsinsteadof
words.

Unfamiliaritywithaparticularapplicationofalanguage

Themostobviousexampleisthedifficultymanypeoplehavemakingaspeech,eventhough
theycanwritetheirideaseffectivelyonpaper.

Inadequateexplanations

Thesecanresultfromareallackofinformationaboutwhatyouaretryingtoconvey,orfrom
assumingthatyouraudiencealreadyhassomeoftheinformationwhen,theydon't.

Apassivemanagementstyle

Asituationwherewearereluctanttoorfinditdifficulttoexertinfluencemaypreventus
communicatingourideaseffectively.Thisisparticularlyimportantwhenpeopleneedtobe
convincedofthevalidityofideas.

Adominantmanagementstyle

Thisiswhenweexertoppressivecontrol,eitherdeliberatelyorunconsciously,andcanmake
thosewearecommunicatingwithautomaticallyreluctanttoacceptwhatwesayorhostileto
ourideas.

15. Environmental
:

16. Environmentalblocks

Environmentalblocks,whichexistwhenthesocialorphysicalenvironmenthindersourproblemsolving,include:
Managementstyle

Thewayinwhichwearemanagedcaninfluencebothourattitudetoproblemsolvingandthefreedomwehaveto.createand
implementideas.Forexample,ifourideasaredismissedconstantlywithcommentssuchas'No,itwouldn'tworkbecause...',
or'No,we'vetrieditbeforeanditdidn'twork',wesoongiveuptrying.
Distractions

Duetoexcessivenoiseandinterruptions,theseaffectsomepeoplemorethanothers,butingeneraltheyhaveadetrimental
effectonproblemsolving.
Physicaldiscomfort

Thiscancreateadistractionaswellasresultinginstress.orlethargydependingonthecircumstances.Forexample,poorly
designedchairsmaycreateadistractionbygivingusbackachewhich,inturn,canmakeusirritableandlessinterestedinany
typeofwork.
Lackofsupport

Thiscomesinmanyforms.Forexample,wemayneedspecialistinformation,advice,skillsorotherresources,orauthorityto
takeaction.Amorepervasiveaspectofthisblockisalackofencouragementandthenecessaryorganisationalstructureto
supportandexploitpeople'sideas.
Stress

Stressduetopressureofworkanddeadlines,affectspeopledifferently.Forthosewhoaresusceptibletostressitcanbea
powerfulblock,hinderingcreativethinkinginparticular.
Lackofcommunication

Thishasanumberofeffects,includinginabilitytogettheinformationyourequireandalackofencouragement.
Monotonouswork

Thiscandullenthusiasmforsolvingproblemsandputusonto'automaticpilot',makingusblindtoproblemswhentheyoccur.
Expectationsofothers

Thesecaninfluencebothourgeneralperf9rmanceinproblemsolvingandtheobjectiveswesetourselves.Forexample,ifour
peersandsuperiorsarehappywitharegularsolutiontoaproblemwemayfeelthatit'sawasteoftimelookingforanew;more
effectivesolution.Ontheotherhand,ifweareexpectedtofindaninnovativesolutionwearelikelytomakeagreatereffort.

17. Barriers to Problem Solving and Decision Making

18. Anumberofbarriersmayexistthataffecttheactualityofproblemsolvinganddecisionmaking.
Decisionmakersmaynotbeawarethatbarriersaredetractingfromthedecision-making
process.Someofthemostcommonbarrierstoproblemsolvinganddecisionmakingare:

Resistancetochange:Peopleareoftenreluctanttochangefromthetime-honoredwayof
doingthings.Resistancetochangecanpreventpeoplefromtakingchancesandfrom
consideringnewpossibilities.

Habits:Habitslimitourvisionofwhatcanbeaccomplishedandmanystandinthewayof
solvingaproblem.Habitsmaygoundetectedbyanindividualandmaybeatremendous
deterrenttocorrectingaproblem.Forexample,receptionistwhoishavingdifficultyin
completinghisorherworkmaybeunawarethatthehabitoftakingpersonalcallsistakingthe
bulkofworktime.

19. 
Individualinsecurity:Individualinsecuritymaydeterindividualsfromtakingrisksor
frompursuingbehaviorthatmayrequirethemtotakeastand.Individualinsecuritymay
comefrompastexperiencesorfromanoveralllackofself-confidence.

Pasthistory:Knowingwhathashappenedbeforeandwhatworkedanddidnotworkcan
inhibitanindividual’sdesiretotrynewmethodsofproblemsolvingordecisionmaking.
Pasthistoryisfrequentlyanexcusefornotmakingchanges.Theindividual,whomaynot
wishtoapproachasituationinanewway,mayremindothersthatasimilarideafailedin
thepast.

20. 
Fearofsuccessorfailure:Atsometime,everyoneexperiencessometypeoffear.The
fearofsuccessorfailuremaybeviewedasunreasonable,butitcangreatlydeterthe
confrontationofproblems.Theunknowncanbeafrighteningthing.Whenanewwayof
doingsomethingisattempted,thepossibilityexiststhatitmayworkwellornotatall.In
eitherinstance,changesmayresult.Whilesomepeoplethriveonrecognition,othersshy
awayfromit.Thesefearsmaycausepeopletoavoidthepossibilityofsuccessorfailure
altogether.

21. 
Fixation:-Fixationistheinabilitytoseeaproblemfromanewperspective.Atsome
pointduringourlives,eachofushasexperiencedfixationinoneformoranother.Have
youeverbeensofocusedonaproblemthatyouwerelockedintothesamethought
patternseventhoughthosethoughtsfailedtoprovideasolutionfortheproblem?There
areanumberofreasonswhyweexperiencedfixation.Probablythemostcommonreason
isthatweapproachedtheproblemwithasetofbeliefsandassumptionsthatlockedusin
toacertainpatternofthinking.Asetofbeliefsandassumptionsiscalledaparadigm.

22. 
Jumpingtoconclusions:Whenproblemsmustbesolvedanddecisionsmade,itiseasy
tojumptoconclusions.Whensomeonejumpstoconclusions,assumptionsaremade
aboutwhatmightormightnotworkorthepossibleresults;assumptionsmayfrequently
takeonnegativeperspectives.

Perceptions:Aswehavestated,perceptionsarethewaysthatweseethingsbasedonour
experiences.Wemaybeunabletoseesomethingfromanotherperspectivebecausewe
aresoblindedbyourownperception.