Defining the problem statement

INTRODUCTION

One of the most important tools for critical thinking is defining a good problem statement.

This lesson will present tools for defining a good problem statement. Through questions, you could understand why a solution is needed, measure the success, what the constraints are, find root causes, consequences and even consider learning lessons in previous attempts.

Describing a good problem statement will guide the critical thinking efforts to the success of the solution.

OBJECTIVES

• Understand the importance of a good problem statement in the process of thinking critically.

• Define tools that help to define this statement

  • Asking the question behind the question

  • Considering past efforts

  • Using new lenses

  • Finding root causes

THINKING THE PROBLEM THROUGH

Define the problem statement

One of the most essential tools for critical thinking is defining a good problem statement. You should never rush and try to find the solution directly, thinking that you will come up with the solution that will satisfy the needs of your requester in the first iteration.

If you don't know very accurate the destination, what your client or stakeholder wants to really solve, you are surely going to get lost.

With your problem-solving and critical thinking skills, you need to know what the destination is and how your stakeholders or clients visualize the success of the problem. The problem statement defines that endpoint.

If you don’t have a clear statement, you’ll probably spend many hours, waste your time, and have excessive revisions. That is because your recommendation will probably not solve the real problem because the problem you are trying to resolve is not defined.

When you describe a good problem statement, it will be the guide for critical thinking efforts. It is going to set out your goals. It will define the boundaries of the problem-solving space. It will establish the success criteria and make visible the constraints you are going to face.

It also should express the assumptions, identify the stakeholders, and frame timelines that the process will face.

Usually, when the time laying out the problem statement has not spent, the process ended with significant issues for their charter because the team is trying to solve different problems and have not the clarity on the ultimate goals, the metrics for success, the needs of the stakeholders and the ultimate boundaries of the space to solve it. In the end, the team wastes time-solving an erroneous problem.

Ask the question behind the question

One good tip is to start by asking the question behind the question.

So many times, facing an issue, we run off and start solving a problem without really thinking through why the person who asks me to do so has in mind when he/she is asking the question. It is essential to understand the reasons behind the question.

After having a good understanding, we are moving forward toward the cause. But don’t stop here and ask why again, trying to get a deeper understanding. Finding out what is causing the stakeholder's concern, we can avoid solving symptoms and not the real question and come up with a more accurate recommendation.

This real question surely opens up new answers, new ideas, and new opportunities, and we will be able to generate better solutions because we understood the question behind the question.

Then, looking at the problem or issue you have been asked to solve, always ask:

Go back to the stakeholder and try to understand what is really driving that request. When you get a better understanding of the issue and their need to solve the problem, you are going to find bigger and better solutions.

Ask focusing questions

If you want to define a problem, it is very helpful to define the boundaries. Asking some focusing questions is a good tip to help to bound the space of the solution

Some examples of these questions could be asking about the real question or asking to identify the stakeholders or influencers involved in the decision.

For measurement, look out to some qualitative and quantitative measures in order to know when you have really solved the problem. Try to find out the specific scope and what is included or not in the space you are solving the issue.

Asking all these questions and spending time in a valuable critical thought will help you to have a much more bounded problem statement and will help you to get the solution earlier and better.

If we ask and answer with focused questions, we will have a better sense of what the real needs around the problem looks like. Then, when we find a solution, it will be a higher likelihood that we solve the problem and we meet the stakeholders' needs.

Ask logical Questions

Logical thinking is a process that involves checking the components of an argument and, through reasoning, make connections between them.

There are four steps in the logical thinking process:

1. Asking the right questions,

2. Collecting and organizing data,

3. Evaluating the information gotten

4. Syntethything into a conclusion.

In the following lines, we will analyze these basic steps.

Asking the right questions

Based on the components of critical thinking, the logical thinker will begin asking as many questions as he/she can be derived by “What are the premises in that problem or issue?”.

Defining clearly the premises may avoid making mistakes further down the line in the logic process, and with it, see if any premises or other vital information is missing. Additionally, no conclusions can be made if there aren’t any premises.

Collecting and organizing data

In the second step, we need to collect and organize data related to the premises. We can organize this information by making connections between the data breaking out the information through tools like, for example, diagramming. Among those, Tree Diagrams could be helpful to show those connections:

Example of a tree diagram. Image: https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Classification-Tree-for-Species-of-Objections_fig4_256017340

Evaluating the information

After diagramming the information gotten, it must be evaluated by determining the validity of the information.

There is a distinction between truth and valid. People have offer troubles separating causes (or premises) valid vs. true because of their ingrained beliefs. Beliefs often interfere with the ability of one person to come to a logical solution (belief bias). In logic thinking, we need to stand in the confirmation bias, using the information to support the hypothesis about a problem.

At the moment we have the data collected, diagrammed or organized, and evaluated, then we can draw a conclusion based on confirmed premises.

Recall that in deductive reasoning, conclusions are fully inferred based on valid premises. On the other hand, in inductive reasoning, we use observations to draw conclusions or a hypothesis.

Then, inferences naturally flow from the pieces of evidence through deductive reasoning. Don`t draw more than what is implied:

• Infer only what the data implies

• Check to ensure inferences are consistent

• Identify underlying assumptions

Considering past efforts

Another tip of critical thinking that helps to define the problem is considering past efforts. We don’t need to reinvent the wheel again. For doing that, we can ask the following questions:

Begin asking if the problem had been considered in the past. If this is true, find the lessons the team already learned and if there are differences between the past and now. Which were the challenges or issues that we need to consider this time and if there are some ongoing assumptions that could limit our thinking. You can also ask who was involved in the past and, if possible, contact him/her to learn from his/her experience. All these questions could prevent us from wasting efforts and avoiding pitfalls. On the other hand, you can involve some more experienced people to help to push your thinking.

By looking at prior efforts, we can understand the limitations that have been key in the past and find if they are still valid.

Examining past efforts can give us clues to better solve the problem this time.

Using new lenses to think critically

Another piece of advice for defining the problem is to look at it through new lenses. That implies changing the point of view or the context from where to look at the problem.

You can change the point of view by changing “the eyes” from who thinks about the problem.

You can approach the problem from the perspective of the CEO, of the frontline staff, of customers, of adjacent groups. Everyone in the different groups will look at the problem in different ways, and they will define the problem differently from their point of view.

You can also change the context, reimagining the problem in new ways. We tend to come at the problem from our perspective depending on our position in the company. From the finances´ point of view, the problem will be defined as a financing problem. From somebody who works in IT, they will say it is an IT problem. Then you can change the context in terms of how you define the problem; you can change the reality. Ask yourself what if…

Whether we can remove the constraints, or whether we can have some of these resources, etc. Is it possible to do one thing instead of another? By changing reality, we can find different ways to define a problem, and that makes it possible to pursue different opportunities. Looking at the problem in new ways, we can have a clearer sense of direction around the real issue so that you can generate more innovative and insightful solutions.

To change the point of view, if it is difficult for you because you are too tight into your functional area, you can find another person from another group. Explain the problem to them, and you can then ask them to define the problem with their words. By doing so, you can obtain a different point of view.

It is important to realize that anyone has their own perspective. It is crucial for critical thinking to have an open mind. One great aspect of open-mindedness is that you are more receptive to other viewpoints

Spending time in this critical thought, seeing the problem from different angles, and understanding what aspects can change can help you uncover a big solution you would never have seen in your limited scope.

Our advice is to spend time in this critical thought stepping back from the issue and asking yourself if there is a different way to define it.

Finding root causes

The last thing to consider in the process of thinking critically is causality. We told that thinking about causes and consequences in a primary way to define the problem

Causes ----------------- PROBLEM ---------------- Consequences

But, you should understand that some elements in the problem are derived from other problems or, even, other related elements. You should see how these new problems tie to another issue. Then, you should do deeper looking for the real root cause of the problems.

As we already said, we don’t want to solve only the symptoms. Instead, we want to solve the correct problem the first time around.

By solving, this implies solving a much deeper problem. If you can really get to the root, you will be more effective in preventing future problems in the organization.

Once you have solved the problem and come up with a recommendation, you should think forward about the consequences. Can you think, by example, about the organizational, competitor, or customer repercussions? This is important to anticipate the consequences.

Think about how everybody will behave if you make this or that change. Think if you have a precise chronology in what causes cause what consequences and try to diagram it. That is going to help you predict the possible outcomes that you could face.

If you see that the outcomes might be wrong, you can modify the recommendation you made, trying to avoid those issues. In conclusion, understanding the causes and the linked effects of your recommendation will help you to answer the problem but preventing unintended consequences.

This critical thinking millstone helps us develop a better and valid recommendation that will, indeed, meet the needs of our stakeholders and help us meet the needs removing or almost reducing negative downstream consequences.

Again, spending time thinking critically about causality and documenting these thoughts in the problem statement will enhance the recommendations' quality, validity, and impact.

CONCLUSIONS

One of the most important tools for critical thinking is defining a good problem statement.

The problem statement defines the project's success. A good statement will set goals, define boundaries, establish the success criteria, make visible the constraints, express assumptions, identify stakeholders, and frame timelines that the process will face on its way to the endpoint.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bowell, T.; Kemp, G. (2002) Critical Thinking, A Concise Guide. Routlege

Browne, M.N.; Keeley, S.M (2007) Asking the right questions. A guide to critical thinking. Pearson. Prentice hall

Courseware (2019) Critical Thinking. Courseware.com

Lovell, S. (2018) Critical Thinking. How to improve your critical thinking skills, problem-solving ability and avoid the 25 cognitive biases in decision-making.